A prison where seven inmates took their own lives between May 1999 and April 2000 is now doing a good job, according to an official report.

Armley Prison at Leeds - the local prison for Bradford offenders - has been praised in the report by Sir David Ramsbotham, the Chief Inspector of Prisons. The improvements follow a vocal campaign by relatives of three Bradford men who were among those who killed themselves at the Victorian prison.

In the opening to his report, published today, Sir David says: "This is a thoroughly good report on the most overcrowded local prison in the country. HMP Leeds has not always enjoyed a good reputation. It is beginning to shed the image of a railway station, with people passing through, and is trying hard to provide a safe and supportive environment."

The jail is notoriously overcrowded with 1,238 men housed in accommodation designed for 770. Today Terry Rooney, MP for Bradford North, who has campaigned alongside the grieving families of suicide victims, welcomed news of improvements and said he hoped they would go further.

The report speaks highly of Stacey Tasker, the first woman governor in the jail's history who has been in charge since June. "I understand the new Governor is going through the place like a dose of salts," Mr Rooney said. "She does seem to be different to the run-of-the-mill Prison Service governor. There is still the major issue of overcrowding and I'll be keeping a very close eye on things."

The 147-page report states that "the effect of the deaths (of inmates) has been considerable.

"Apart from the personal distress that families and other prisoners had experienced, staff had been rocked to the core by their inability to prevent these deaths. All the recommendations from the investigation reports have been looked at and taken forward."

Assessments of new inmates have been tightened up and 26 prisoners work as 'PALs' - Samaritan-trained listeners.