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Ex-Offenders
This briefing provides information and good practice resources for people working with ex-offenders who are homeless or threatened with homelessness. The term ex-offender means someone who has been sentenced for a crime but is generally used in connection with someone who has been in prison or a similar institution. Prisoners are at high risk of homelessness on or after their release. Indeed, many prisoners did not have settled housing before they were sentenced.
New Findings from Our Survey of Needs and Provision related to Criminal Justice , including the reported proportions of clients in homelessness services who are prison leavers.
Resettlement of ex-offenders
In connection with prisoners and ex-offenders, the term resettlement means successful re-integration into the community without re-offending and return to prison. The main issues are rehousing and education, training and employment (ETE) but on release prisoners may need support with other issues, such as mental health difficulties, drug and/or alcohol addiction and rebuilding family relationships.
In 2002 the Social Exclusion Unit published a report on Reducing re-offending by ex-prisoners, which emphasised the importance of preventing ex-offender homelessness.
Resettlement resources
- The Prison Service Website has a page on resettlement
- Crime reduction charity NACRO has a specialised website, Resettlement.info and a Resettlement Plus Helpline, 020 7840 6464 (with a freephone for ex-offenders: 0800 0181 259). As well as providing accommodation and resettlement services for ex-offenders, NACRO runs a range of homelessness prevention schemes, including mediation and advice.
- DePaul Trust does prison work, currently operating from six young offender institutions and one prison.
Rehousing
With prisoners, housing advice, including benefits advice, is essential to try to prevent the loss of existing accommodation - or to bring tenancies to an end before rent arrears become a barrier to rehousing - and to find accommodation for those leaving prison without a home. Many prisons now have specialised housing advice projects, which are often run by or with voluntary organisations. On release, prisoners may be eligible for money to help secure accomodation.
St Mungo's outreach team has worked to help resettle prisoners at HM Prison Pentonville for many years. It now has a new resettlement and social cohesion scheme at the prison, working with Muslim inmates and Muslim communities in Tower Hamlets, Hackney and Newham.
Under Section 189 of the Housing Act 1996, a homeless or potentially person will have a priority need for rehousing if s/he is vulnerable as a result of "having been in custody or detention". But by no means all former prisoners are accepted for rehousing and many end up homeless, including rough sleeping. According to the Street to Home Annual Report 2005/6 between 40% and 45% of rough sleepers in London have been in prison.
Rehousing Resources
- Focus Futures, in connection with the Centre for Social Justice at Coventry University, has published a "Good Practice Ideas Guide" on Prisoner Resettlement and Housing Provision.
- See our pages on rehousing and move-on
Education, Training and Employment
Getting ex-offenders into employment is seen as one of the key issues in resettlement. But ex-offenders can face huge barriers to finding work. Not only do they have the stigma of a criminal record, they tend have a lower level of skills than the rest of the population, as is the case with homeless people.
Business Action on Homelessness helps homeless people and those at risk of homelessness into work through a work placement, and frequently takes ex-offenders. See also Business in the Community's resource on employing ex-offenders
St Giles Trust is a Homeless Link member in Camberwell, London that helps offenders to find or keep housing and jobs. It runs a Straight to Work scheme, which trains prisoners in an NVQ in Advice and Guidance (level 3) to become Peer Advisors, offering support and advice to new prisoners.
ETE Resources
In 2005, NACRO published Ex-offenders and employment - the way forward.
In 2003, the Home Office published research on Resettlement outcomes on release from prison in 2003, which focused mainly on ETE.
Other national organisations working with ex-offenders
- Unlock, the National Association of Ex-offenders, supports ex-offenders and serving prisoners to overcome social and financial exclusion, plan for life after release and rebuild their lives after leaving crime behind.
- Revolving Doors is a charity concerned with mental health and the criminal justice system.
Regional and local organisations
London
The London Resettlement Team is based in the Government Office for London (GOL)and is a small, multi-agency team comprising employees from GOL, the Prison Service, the Home Office, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and the Department for Work and Pensions. It has produced a resettlement of offenders strategy. Under a pilot scheme, prisoners anywhere in the country can transfer to Wormwood Scrubs, where there is a project preparing people for release and resettlement into accommodation. Stepping Stones is a Christian charity with workers at Wormwood Scrubs, dealing with housing provision, move on, etc.
New Horizon Youth Centre has developed work in prisons, in response to the increased use of ASBOs. Women are put in contact with the centre's prisons resettlement team and they plan a support strategy for when they leave prison. A worker from the WOS project meets the woman at the prison gate when she is released and escorts her to services such as their Homeless Persons Unit or local drop-ins.
Homeless Link member Broadway runs a six-bed supported housing scheme for 16-19 year olds, with referrals from the Hammersmith & Fulham Youth Offending Team.
The East Midlands
Nottingham Prison's resettlement service, which helps prisoners to find housing and jobs, won a Guardian Public Service Award in 2005.
The North West
New bridge prison liaison project offers advice and guidance to people with responsibility for resettling prisoners with connections to Liverpool.
Vale Royal Borough Council's supported housing scheme for ex-offenders with drug addiction problems is cited in the draft North West Homelessness Strategy.
Yorkshire and the Humber
Foundation Housing is a supported housing organisation in North and West Yorkshire that does a lot of work with ex-offenders.