Deaths within two weeks of prison release hit record high in England and Wales | Prisons and probation

The number of deaths within two weeks of being released from prison in England and Wales has reached a record high, Guardian research has revealed.

In 2025, 77 people died within 14 days of release from prison; This is 28% higher than the 60 deaths recorded the previous year and the highest figure since records began in 2021.

Experts said the main driver of the crisis was the increase in the number of prisoners released to become homeless, with many falling through the “crisis gates” due to a lack of available housing.

Analysis of Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) reports published to date has revealed that one in four people who died were released homeless. Separate Ministry of Justice data showed nearly 13,000 people leaving prisons homeless or rough sleeping by April 2025; This means a 39% increase compared to the previous year.

The reports detail cases, including that of Robert Barraclough, 47, who died a day after being released from HMP Nottingham in October 2022. Barraclough had told staff he was afraid of having to sleep in a tent in the cold when he was released and had begun self-harming in prison.

Darren Docherty, 48, had mental health problems and a history of self-harm and killed himself six days after being released from HMP Stoke Heath in August 2023. He had told his GP that the stress of not having a place to live was affecting his mental health, and he was living in a tent after his request for emergency accommodation was rejected by the council.

Enver Solomon, chief executive of social justice charity Nacro, said the deaths were a “hidden tragedy”.

“People come out of prison, they die, and it goes unnoticed,” he said. “And these deaths are preventable. We should not see this as an inevitable consequence of people facing many problems and challenges in their lives.”

“We see every day what a difference having a safe and secure place to live and the right support can make for someone and, tragically, how it can be a matter of life or death.”

Solomon said a shortage of social and supported housing and the inaccessibility of the private rented sector, where landlords often require guarantors and deposits, were leaving people with nowhere to go.

“We’re seeing people commit crimes just to be detained for a while because they know they’re going to have a roof over their head, they’re going to be able to buy food, they’re going to have access to the medical wing, they’re going to be able to get substance abuse support,” he said.

While there is no directly comparable data available before 2021, research published in 2019 found that the number of people dying while in post-release custody in the community increased each year from 2014.

A report by the charity Inquest found that 2,297 people died between 2010 and 2019 despite major changes to probation services.

The PPO has been carrying out independent investigations into complaints and deaths in prison since 2004. In September 2021, it began investigating deaths that occurred within 14 days of a person’s release.

The number of people released homeless before their deaths is likely to be an underestimate as more than 100 reports are still under investigation. In total, According to the latest data, 308 deaths have been recorded within 14 days of release from prison since September 2021.

Data recently announced by the Ministry of Justice also showed that the number of licensed prisoners recalled to prison reached a record high of 14,349 in the last October-December period.

A quarter of these recalls were for “failure to reside,” meaning a released prisoner did not live at an approved address.

Pavan Dhaliwal, chief executive of Revolving Doors, a charity that works with repeat offenders, said safe housing was “a key element of any rehabilitation”.

“Prisons are already overcrowded and you’re sending people back because they have no place to stay. This is ridiculous,” he said. “The prison doors you are released from should be a bridge to rehabilitation, but are actually a trapdoor into cycles of crisis and crime.”

The charity is working with Stephen*, 31, who has been jailed dozens of times over the past decade and is often recalled because he does not live at a confirmed address.

“Sometimes they would release me with a fiver in my pocket and throw me out on the street. I would only stay out for two or three days. Sometimes I would even be arrested the same night,” he said. “Most of the time I slept on the streets, in doorways around the city. They let you go without giving anything.”

His precarious living situation often led him to relapse into crime unless he was recalled for violating the conditions of his licence. “I couldn’t find a job. What employer would want to hire a young man who has no place to live? Who doesn’t have access to a shower? It was easier to continue crime for a long time,” he said.

Stephen said he would try to access housing support in prison for the final eight weeks of his sentence, but the waiting list was so long he would not receive any help when he was released.

“There were so many people in the same boat. Even though they turn around and say, ‘Sorry, there’s nothing for you,’ they wave the carrot and say, ‘We’ll find a place,’ but at the end of the day, they never do,” he said.

“Some people go out and have their own house and a wife, but if you’re a single kid and you don’t have much, you’ve lost all ties with your family, and if no one wants to know you, you’ve got nothing.”

*Name changed to protect privacy