Government data for 2023 to 2025 reveal large gaps in supervision of higher-risk cases, as ministers plan less contact with low-risk prison leavers and more tagging.
A bulletin from HM Inspectorate of Probation finds that unsuitable placements and short stays are hampering the hostels that house high-risk people after their release from prison.
HM Inspectorate of Probation rated Bridgewood in Northampton as requiring improvement and Plas y Wern in Wrexham as good, in its eighth and ninth visits to Approved Premises.
The Chief Inspector of Probation, Martin Jones, voiced strong concerns about the South West and South Central regions but rated Barking and Dagenham’s youth justice service ‘Good’.
The Chief Inspector of Probation said inspection findings paint a grim picture, as the Prison Reform Trust and the Ministry of Justice also responded to the committee.
The committee’s report finds recalls at a record high, a sharp fall in the quality of risk assessments and staff working well beyond capacity.
The Chief Inspector of Probation said weak information sharing undermined risk management in the region, though its work had improved since a May 2024 inspection.
The Chief Inspector of Probation, the probation officers’ union and penal reform charities have backed the Government’s decision to drop plans to publicise people sentenced to unpaid work.
Ministers have accepted a House of Lords amendment that removes a Sentencing Bill clause designed to publicise people sentenced to unpaid work in the community.
