Homelessness and rough sleeping among released prisoners

Approximate read time: 15 minutes

The House of Lords is scheduled to consider the following question for short debate on 16 July 2026:

Lord Farmer (Conservative) to ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of partnership working between prisons and local housing authorities in preventing homelessness and rough sleeping among prisoners released early.

1. Statistics: Homelessness and rough sleeping among released prisoners

In England and Wales, data on the housing status of prisoners following their release is published by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in its ‘Offender accommodation outcomes’ statistics. The most recent data available is for March 2025. The data covers all prisoners released and it does not include data specifically for those released early from prison. In the year April 2024 to March 2025, on average approximately 1,000 prisoners per month were sleeping rough on the night following their release.^[1] This represented around 14% of all prisoners released every month over that period, and it was an increase of approximately 40% compared to 2023/24.

Rough sleeping is defined by the MoJ as an individual having no accommodation they are entitled to occupy and they sleep “in open air (such as on the streets, in tents, doorways, parks, bus shelters or encampments) or in other places not designed for occupation”.^[2]

Homelessness in the MoJ statistics does not include rough sleeping, but is defined as an individual having no accommodation they are entitled to occupy, or they are occupying a property with “no legal authority or permission to do so (such as squatting) or the individual may reside in night shelters, emergency hostels or campsites”. Between April 2024 and March 2025, approximately 70 prisoners a month (1% of the total) were classed as homeless on the night following their release from prison.

There is evidence of a “cyclical relationship” between homelessness, rough sleeping and the criminal justice system, with the homeless more likely to enter prison and those released into homelessness more likely to reoffend.^[3] Homelessness for ex-prisoners can exacerbate a series of factors, such as unemployment, relationship breakdown and mental health issues, that are associated with increased reoffending rates.

2. Early release schemes

In 2024, the Labour government introduced measures to deal with significant pressures on prison places in England and Wales.^[4] The pressures were exacerbated following rioting in the summer of 2024 in the wake of the Southport attack in which three young girls were murdered.^[5] In response to the prison capacity issues, the government introduced an early release scheme for some prisoners on ‘determinate sentences’.^[6] A determinate sentence is one that has a fixed end date. Prisoners serving determinate sentences can be automatically released from prison on licence into the community. The government reduced the automatic release point to enable eligible prisoners to be released after serving 40% of their sentence, rather than 50%. Those serving sentences for certain sexual, violent, domestic abuse, terrorism and national security offences were excluded from the scheme. The Labour government’s reforms built on measures taken by the previous Conservative government to ease pressure on prison capacity.^[7]

There has been no detailed research on whether there is a direct link between the early release schemes and increased rates of homelessness among ex-prisoners. However, housing charities have raised concerns that the schemes have put additional pressure on their housing services. In May 2024, the charity Nacro said:

People are released early with short notice and because prison staff are overstretched they don’t always let us know in advance of people coming out […] Without enough notice, housing is difficult, if not impossible, to arrange, [and] it removes the chance to line up mental health or substance misuse services for people.^[8]

In July 2024, the homeless charity Big Issue cited analysis from the charity sector that “measures to prevent prisons in England and Wales from reaching capacity by releasing prisoners early could see at least 800 offenders released into homelessness”.^[9]

In November 2024, HM Inspectorate of Prisons submitted written evidence to a House of Commons Public Accounts Committee inquiry into homelessness.^[10] It contained anecdotal evidence that at some prisons the limited housing stock available for those released had been “overwhelmed by early release schemes”.^[11]

In February 2025, in response to a parliamentary question on the housing support available to prisoners released under the early release scheme, the government said up to 12-weeks temporary accommodation was available to eligible prisoners:

Those released under the standard determinate sentence (SDS40) changes who are at risk of homelessness can be referred to HM Prison and Probation Service’s Community Accommodation Service, tier 3, which can provide up to 12-weeks’ temporary accommodation.

[…]

During the initial release phase in September and October [2024] we worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Welsh government to mitigate any impact on local authorities, as well as taking practical steps to minimise the chances that individuals were released homeless. These included ensuring data were shared with the 49 strategic housing specialists based in prisons and with the Probation Service-based homeless prevention teams, to make sure plans were in place for those who needed accommodation support.^[12]

Section 3 of this briefing summarises the duties on prisons to refer prisoners at risk of homelessness to local authorities, and concerns raised about the effectiveness of the process and the availability of suitable accommodation.

3. Prisons’ “duty to refer” to local authority housing services

The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 placed a duty on specified public institutions, including prisons and probation services, to identify and refer service users who are homeless or at risk of homelessness to a local housing authority (LHA).^[13] The referral requires the consent of the prisoner, and the referral is made to the LHA of the prisoner’s choice. The prison’s duty relates only to making the referral. Once the referral has been made, the local authority has duties to make contact with the individual and to provide homelessness prevention services and, in some circumstances, homelessness relief if the individual becomes homeless. Government guidance states that local authorities should “work with public authorities in their area to design effective referral mechanisms which meet their local circumstances”.^[14]

In answer to parliamentary questions, the government has argued that local authorities collaborate effectively with the prisons service to reduce homelessness. For example, in June 2026 the government said:

Statutory responsibility for homelessness sits with local authorities, who play a central role in supporting prison leavers by assessing housing need, working jointly with prisons and probation ahead of release, and helping secure appropriate accommodation. This joint approach is being strengthened through the expansion of pre-release panels, supported by strategic housing specialists and homelessness prevention teams, to improve access to the right accommodation pathways before release from custody.

We are committed to ensuring that robust pre-release plans are created for those leaving custody, so that accommodation needs are identified early and the right support is put in place. Dedicated pre-release teams in prisons work closely with individuals to identify immediate needs, co-ordinate referrals to relevant services, and support continuity between custody and the community.^[15]

However, the HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ 2025/26 annual report stated there were “ongoing problems” with homelessness on release.^[16] It stated:

Homelessness on release remained stubbornly high. Many prisons reported that 20–30% of prisoners had no settled address, with many more relying on short-term accommodation. Prisons did not hold housing data for the increasing numbers released directly from court, creating a significant information gap for establishments such as Wormwood Scrubs, where this group made up about a third of releases. No duty-to-refer referrals were completed for homeless prisoners on remand.

Short sentences and recalls—often lasting just 14 days—made housing planning difficult. Chronic shortages of social housing and oversubscribed approved premises created bottlenecks. There were high levels of overall homelessness in some regions and prisoners were returning to areas far from the prison, which made it difficult to coordinate services. Many men were not referred to local authorities or housing workers in good time, and limited staffing and resources among housing providers led to high caseloads and missed opportunities for support.^[17]

The annual report also highlighted some positive practices:

There were some commendable examples of positive practice. The appointment of strategic housing specialists across the country was improving planning and liaison with local authorities. For example, at Northumberland we noted that this role had made good use of data to analyse outcomes for prisoners and there was evidence of good, creative work to build links in the community. Multi-agency release boards and pre-release panels also improved coordination of support. In some prisons, the expansion of housing support to people on remand was helping prisoners to maintain tenancies and reduce their risk of homelessness.^[18]

In December 2025, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a summary of the evidence on the relationship between homelessness and the criminal justice system.^[19] On the issue of effective collaboration between prisons and housing services, the report said there were some positive aspects of good practice. However, it also highlighted evidence of the following areas in which services were not working well:

• Inadequate training and awareness among staff: One of the primary issues in supporting people leaving prison is the lack of adequate training for staff responsible for addressing accommodation needs.
• Siloed and short-term support services: The support provided to people leaving prison is often fragmented and delivered in siloes, which is particularly detrimental to individuals with complex and overlapping needs.
• Substandard and unsuitable accommodation: Many people leaving prison are placed in temporary or supported housing that is substandard or unsuitable for their needs […] The environments of some temporary accommodations can exacerbate pre-existing problems such as substance use or mental health issues.
• Demand and capacity issues: The overall system for supporting people leaving prison is hampered by demand and capacity issues such as severe staff shortages, high caseloads, and insufficient resources.^[20]

The report also said the criminalisation of rough sleeping, through provisions of the Vagrancy Act 1824, contributed to some homeless people not receiving the support they needed. Since the publication of the report, the government has decriminalised rough sleeping by repealing the act.^[21]

The Independent Monitoring Boards (IMB) organisation has also commented on the effectiveness of preparations for prisoners’ release. All prisons in England have a statutory independent monitoring board, composed of members of the public who volunteer to monitor the conditions within the prison.^[22] The IMB publishes reports on the performance of individual prisons and an annual national report assessing the performance of the prison service. A key finding of the 2025 IMB annual report was that prisoners “continued to be released homeless or with very little preparation, perpetuating the revolving door effect [of former prisoners returning to prison]”.^[23] The report said “failures in release planning” left many prisoners at risk of homelessness. The IMB said preparations for prisoners’ release was “alarmingly inadequate” at many prisons.^[24] It continued:

Boards reported that prisoners were released directly from training prisons, such as Whatton, which did not have the resources or remit for resettlement work, or were transferred to resettlement prisons only weeks before release (or sometimes just days, as at Chelmsford), leaving no time for meaningful preparation.^[25]

The IMB claimed the early release of prisoners had been a contributory factor in a lack of preparedness:

Shortages of community accommodation often result in prisoners only being informed of accommodation arrangements immediately prior to release which can be unsettling at an already anxiety-inducing time. Prisoners also continued to be released homeless, sometimes at alarming rates. At Hewell, for example, approximately a third of prisoners were released without accommodation on their first night in the 2024–25 reporting year. At Doncaster, a survey conducted by the board revealed that the proportion of prisoners worried about being unprepared for release rose from 8% to 38% during their 2024–25 reporting period, which the board linked to the early release scheme.^[26]

4. A new “duty to collaborate” with local authorities?

In December 2025, the government published ‘A national plan to end homelessness’. It said “poor coordination across public services”, including prisons, was a driver of homelessness.^[27] The plan included a “long-term ambition that no one should leave a public institution into homelessness”. To that end, the government said it would introduce:

A new ‘duty to collaborate’ for key public services, […] compelling public services to work together to prevent homelessness and support those who are at crisis point. We will consult on the new duty and legislate as soon as the parliamentary timetable allows.^[28]

The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents local authorities, has welcomed the national plan as a “step change in ambition” to reduce homelessness, but it said the plan “must go further and be fully resourced to enable councils and their partners to end homelessness for good”.^[29]

At the time of writing, the government had not launched the consultation on the ‘duty to collaborate’, and the duty had not yet been implemented.

5. Read more

• House of Lords, ‘Written question: Prisoners’ release: Homelessness (HL1092)’, 2 July 2026
• BBC News, ‘‘Housing for released prisoners is a major issue’’, 6 June 2026
• Jessica Murray, ‘Falling through the cracks: Ex-prisoners who died within two weeks of release’, Guardian, 31 May 2026
• BBC News, ‘More becoming homeless after prison, charity warns’, 16 December 2025
• Nacro, ‘MoJ data reveals disturbing state of prisons with rising violence and thousands more released into homelessness: Nacro calls for urgent action’, 31 July 2025
• Homeless Link, ‘Preventing homelessness on release from prison’, 16 May 2025
• House of Commons, ‘Written question: Prisoners’ release: Housing (30786)’, 19 February 2025
• Prison Reform Trust, ‘Getting help with resettlement in prison’, accessed 10 July 2026

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