World Prisons

Reform / Organisations

European Committee for the Prevention of Torture

regional · founded 1989 · HQ France

Verified 21 May 2026 · Data dated 21 May 2026
Fresh · 8d ago

Council of Europe body that visits and reports on detention facilities across 46 European states.

Under the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, the CPT visits prisons, police cells, psychiatric institutions, and immigration detention across Europe, then publishes detailed reports. Its findings are routinely the most authoritative account of detention conditions in each member state.

Focus areas

torture preventionconditionsmonitoring

Reports published by CPT

  • CPT's seven-prison inspection of France documents severe overcrowding (some facilities at 200%+ of capacity), inadequate access to outdoor exercise, and serious shortcomings in mental-health care. France's prison occupancy hit a record 78,082 detainees in 2024 against a capacity of ~60,400.