An inquiry has been launched after Ian Huntley, the murderer of two Soham schoolgirls, was found unconscious in his jail cell today after taking a suspected overdose.

Huntley was discovered at 1.19am at Wakefield Prison, and staff attempted resuscitation. The killer was taken to Pinderfields Hospital in West Yorkshire to have his stomach pumped, and remains in the hospital's intensive care department under sedation, with a police guard.

Early reports suggest that Huntley is likely to survive. He had previously attempted suicide while on remand in June 2003, and had apparently indicated again in recent weeks that he wanted to die.

But Huntley’s suicide watch status had been downgraded just three weeks ago, said Brian Caton, the general secretary of the Prison Officers Association.

"My understanding is that the status of constant watch was removed three weeks ago. It was based on the fact that the assessment of him changed."

A Prison Service spokeswoman said this morning that a review of the "management strategy" for Huntley is to be launched. The review has been commissioned by Prison Service chiefs and will be carried out by the head of the service’s Standards Audit Unit, Rob Kellett.

A Prison Service spokeswoman said: "This morning at 1.19am Ian Huntley was found unconscious in his cell in the healthcare wing at HMP Wakefield. Resuscitation was attempted and an ambulance was called immediately. The ambulance took him to hospital.

"He is now being held in a state of heavy sedation whilst he receives treatment for what is believed to be an overdose."

Huntley was jailed for life in December 2003 for killing Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, ten-year-olds who attended a school in Soham, Cambridgeshire, where he worked as a caretaker.

Senior officials at Cambridgeshire police were alerted early this morning to Huntley's overdose and a family liaison officer told the parents of Holly and Jessica about the killer's apparent suicide attempt.

In June 2003 Huntley was taken to hospital after apparently trying to kill himself with pills hidden in teabags.

He is said to have been able to hide about 30 antidepressant pills and then take them despite being on suicide watch at the top security Woodhill jail near Milton Keynes. He spent 36 hours in Milton Keynes General Hospital before being returned to the healthcare unit at the prison.

An official report into the incident uncovered a number of "serious systems failures", including management and staff briefings which were "not robust enough", but it did not recommend disciplining individual officers.

The system officers used to search Huntley’s belongings was "predictable" and "did not include the items stored outside of his cell", added the report, which made 15 recommendations, including a review of the jail’s cell search strategy and an independent review of security intelligence in the prison, including CCTV.

Then Home Office minister Paul Goggins said the internal report revealed a "completely unacceptable situation". The minister said at the time: "Procedures for dispensing medication to Mr Huntley fell well short of acceptable standards."

Prison authorities were warned after Huntley’s last suicide attempt that he presents "an on-gong significant risk of self-harm".

A report, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, found that those in charge of Huntley should work on the basis that he would try to hurt himself again.

Today’s incident will raise yet more questions about the Prison Service’s supervision of one of Britain’s most high-profile killers, and about the prison where he was being held.

Wakefield jail was condemned after Dr Harold Shipman, the serial killer GP, committed suicide there in January 2004. Although an official report said his death could not have been prevented, Prisons and Probation Ombudsman Steven Shaw made a series of criticisms of prison authorities. He went on to make 17 recommendations to prevent further deaths.

Mr Shaw specifically attacked decisions made in relation to Shipman under the prison privileges scheme, which meant the former Greater Manchester GP was not able to ring his wife, Primrose.

He also expressed concern that details of Shipman having been on suicide watch before were not passed from Frankland Prison, near Durham, to Wakefield. Shipman - Britain’s worst serial killer, who murdered at least 250 patients - used a ligature of torn bedsheets to hang himself in his cell a day before his 58th birthday.

John Powley, Soham’s county councillor and a governor at Soham Village College, criticised the prison authorities for being lax in failing once more to supervise Huntley.

"I am sure that there are some people in Soham who would wish him to die and say good riddance to bad rubbish," said Mr Powley.

"But I am not one of those. My view is that he committed a heinous crime. He was properly convicted and now he should serve his sentence. If that means he spends the rest of his life in prison so be it."

Mr Powley said he was also angered by the way publicity about Huntley regularly brought the Soham murders back into the headlines, turning public attention towards the small Cambridgeshire town.

Children at both the junior school where Holly and Jessica were pupils and the senior school where Huntley worked were returning to their classrooms this week.

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