Catalonia’s prisons are nearly full, and inmate numbers continue to climb. The regional government is moving quickly to add up to 700 new prison places through prefabricated modules, a stopgap to handle the surge in detainees. As of August 31, official figures show 9,597 people held in Catalan prisons, which have a total capacity of 10,016. That leaves little room for further increases.
Barcelona is under the most pressure. Convictions in the city have jumped 40 percent since the start of 2024, partly because of a crackdown on repeat offenders. The region’s 13 prisons, built for 10,014 people, now hold 9,583 inmates. Even a small increase could push the system to its limit. Over the past five years, Catalonia’s prison population has grown by about 1,800 people, or 23%, adding pressure on facilities and staff, information from ARA.
"In some prisons, inmates are now being housed in temporary or non-standard areas, such as infirmaries or intake modules, due to a lack of available space."
ARA
The first expansion will add 256 new places at Mas d’Enric prison in Tarragona by 2028. Modular construction is intended to avoid long planning delays and major investments. The government also plans to install similar modules at other prisons with available space, but hasn’t yet said which ones. ARA reports that the new modules will add "several hundred" places, but won’t fully solve the overcrowding problem.
Justice Minister Ramon Espadaler’s team says these steps are needed to handle what it calls the "first avalanche" of new inmates. Prison staff warn, but, that overcrowding is already affecting safety and living conditions. Unions and sources inside the system say the current workforce is sized for about 7,500 inmates, not the nearly 10,000 now in custody. That raises concerns about security and care.
The government says it will not allow more than two prisoners per cell, limiting flexibility as numbers rise. Conditions for inmates are becoming a political issue. On October 18, the Catalan Parliament will begin a commission to review prison conditions, including the use of restraints, inmate health, suicide rates and rehabilitation programs. The move follows a letter from humanitarian groups to Pope León XIV criticizing the state of Catalonia’s prisons after his visit to Brians 1 in June.
"Political oversight is increasing: the Catalan Parliament is preparing to discuss the state of prisons and detention conditions, making the issue highly sensitive and potentially leading to further inspections and recommendations."
ARA
The Generalitat is also working on two more projects: an open-regime center in Barcelona’s Zona Franca, due this year, and a new women’s prison in the same area, planned for 2029. The Zona Franca facilities are expected to add 800 places, with about half that number available initially. They will mainly house men in third-degree (semi-liberty) status who now occupy space in Trinitat and Wad-ras prisons, both set to close.
The picture has shifted sharply since recent years. In 2016, Catalonia had 12,376 prison places; now it has just over 10,000, even as the inmate population has grown by 1,900 in four years. Barcelona’s Modelo prison closed in 2017 after 113 years, a move intended to begin a new era of humane incarceration. Instead, the region is struggling to keep pace with more convictions and pre-trial detentions, driven by tougher policing and faster court proceedings for minor crimes.
The official occupancy rate doesn’t tell the whole story. Not every cell is available at all times: maintenance, solitary confinement and upgrades leave even less room. Negotiations with contractors for the new modules at Mas d’Enric are still ongoing, and it remains unclear whether the 2028 deadline will be met.
Other Spanish regions face similar problems as population growth and policy changes put pressure on public infrastructure. For example, the Generalitat in Valencia recently announced a major hospital expansion, as reported earlier, part of a wider trend toward rapid capacity upgrades in basic services.
The Catalan government’s move to expand prison capacity with modular construction reflects fading hopes for a shrinking inmate population. Officials are trying to keep overcrowding from becoming a crisis, while longer-term reform remains unresolved. Promises of better conditions and rehabilitation now depend on available space and political will. If current trends continue, Catalonia’s prison system could show how short-term fixes can undermine broader reforms.
