Prisoners: Reoffending

Lord Laming Excerpts

Tuesday 14th October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

Education is absolutely vital. We want people to leave prison able to read and write, and far too many do not. The education budget is not being cut; we just get less value for money. We are rebalancing because some prisons had an oversupply of education, money and staff compared with others. I do not want to walk past classrooms in prisons that are half-full; they need to be full. We need to support people in prison with digital learning as well. It is not just about education; it is about how we get people ready for when they leave prison so that they do not come back. Education is an important part of it, but so is work, housing and their health.

[Lord Laming (CB)]

My Lords, in support of the initiatives that I know the Minister is very much involved with and has mentioned, could he say what progress he is making to reduce the number of prisoners being released on a Friday afternoon?

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

My noble friend is right that, in the past, that has been a significant problem. It still happens, but it happens far less. We try to release people on a Thursday, but some are still released on Fridays because of various technicalities. One of the things that I am working really hard at is getting people into housing when they are released. Over 14% of people leave prison with nowhere to live, and it is not surprising that they come back so often. For example, I was at HMP Bronzefield last week, a well-run prison. I found there that the women who are leaving with nowhere to live are coming back. The average length of stay of a woman in Bronzefield is 56 days. We need to ensure that there are more reasons why they can get out and stay out.