According to The Times, Roman Catholics have switched places with Anglicans, making Catholics the largest group of Christians in UK prisons.
Official figures show Anglicans have been steadily declining in prisons after making up half of all inmates a quarter of a century ago. According to the Ministry of Justice Anglicans behind bars only represent 17 per cent, of the prison population.
According to the Times, the number of prisoners that identify as Anglican has fallen from 21,600 in 1993 to 14,691. The number of Roman Catholic prisoners has increased from 7,766 to 14,961. The number of Muslims has risen from 2,106 to 13,100 in the same amount of time.
Tim Rosier, head of Reflex which is a program that works offenders told Premier the numbers mirror the nation's diversity.
He said: "The prison population is reflective of the general population so some of the statistics and what we're seeing here is a reflection of the changes we're seeing in wider society and out community where we're becoming more diverse."
The report revealed that more than 900 Poles in prison probably led to pushing Anglicans down the list. A large number of inmates from traditionally Catholic countries such as Ireland and Portugal also may have contributed.
The Rt Rev James Langstaff, the Bishop of Rochester and Bishop to Prisons, told The Times: "The prison population has changed over the years and we have quite a high number of foreign nationals in our prisons.
"There is clearly a changing pattern of faith which is seen in a higher proportion of Muslims and other faiths in the system."
Rosier told Premier the work of chaplaincy is about offering support for people no matter what denomination they are from or even if they have a faith.
He said: "There are often many people who will put on their induction forms when they come in that they belong to a particular religion.
"Some of the people will be practicing in that particular religion or it might be part of their cultural identity or it might reflect where their family has come from."
He added that as a chaplain it's important to respect the faith of every inmate and their traditions in order to make an impact that will lead to the prisoner being a better citizen upon release.
The largest group of prisoners is those with no religion, on 26,443.
