Justice System Under Fire as Early Prisoner Releases Raise Safety Concerns for Abuse Victims]

Justice System Under Fire as Early Prisoner Releases Raise Safety Concerns for Abuse Victims]

A failure to implement safeguards ahead of legislation allowing early release of offenders has sparked concern that abuse victims may be placed at risk, ministers have been warned.

In a coordinated intervention, the victims commissioner and domestic abuse commissioner have separately urged ministers to immediately suspend planned early releases of offenders convicted of crimes against women and girls in England and Wales.

Charities report that numerous victims have entered a state of panic, with some installing personal security measures including CCTV, after receiving notifications that offenders will begin being released under the new Sentencing Act from September.

The legislation, introduced to address long-standing prison overcrowding, aims to reduce capacity pressures. However, justice secretary David Lammy and prisons minister James Timpson have been accused of failing to deliver promised safeguards and victim support systems that were expected to be operational by the release date.

Rape crisis organizations warn that support services may become overwhelmed as more victims learn of impending release schedules for offenders in the coming weeks.

While over 38,000 prisoners were released under emergency measures since Labour took power due to severe capacity constraints, the sentencing law enacted in January—designed to prevent future crises—includes no exemptions for serious crimes, domestic abuse, or terrorism-related convictions.

Jess Phillips, who resigned as safeguarding minister in May, stated she had raised multiple concerns about risk assessments prior to the bill’s passage, but these were not addressed.

“They must halt all releases related to violence against women and girls until they can prove proper risk assessments are conducted in every case,” she said. “Without adequate victim support systems, the state is leaving the responsibility of managing the prisons crisis in the hands of victims. That is not acceptable.”

Claire Waxman, the victims commissioner, and Nicole Jacobs, the domestic abuse commissioner, said they were given specific assurances during the bill’s passage that remain unfulfilled.

Waxman commented: “I was repeatedly told that victims would be properly informed and assured that protective measures would be in place. It is now evident that communication with victims, safeguarding, and support was an afterthought.”

Writing to Lord Timpson, Jacobs highlighted that promised safeguards—such as a dedicated helpline under the Victims and Courts Act—had not been initiated. “Planning for it has not even begun,” she wrote.

Additional commitments included comprehensive pre-release checks and providing support services with full visibility of offender risk profiles and management plans. “These were not vague promises—they were the conditions under which this scheme was deemed acceptable to resolve the capacity crisis and ensure public safety,” Jacobs noted. “None have been delivered.”

Waxman, in a letter to the justice secretary, wrote: “I lack confidence that offender risks will be properly assessed, that victims’ safety will be ensured, or that probation is equipped to manage this volume of offenders in the community.”

Letters sent to victims have been described as damaging to trust and confidence in the justice system, with recipients expressing shock, anxiety, anger, and confusion. “They feel betrayed by the justice system and insulted by how the communication has been handled,” she added.

One survivor of non-recent child sexual abuse told Waxman she installed CCTV for her protection after receiving the letter, stating: “I no longer trust the government to keep me safe.”

Another woman informed The Guardian that the man who raped her violated a non-molestation order 26 times during the five-year trial process. “He will now spend less time in prison than it took for his case to reach court, while I was given a life sentence,” she said. “Victims are forgotten and the justice system is broken.”

Conservative MPs met with victims of grooming gangs and forced a non-binding opposition day motion in the Commons demanding revision of the Sentencing Act to remove early release rights for rapists, paedophiles, and grooming gang members.

Jade Belgrove, who Waived anonymity as a child rape survivor, said she was “petrified for the women who have been through this.” Her petition calling for a halt to early release of sexual offenders has garnered over 62,000 signatures.

Under the new system, designed to improve rehabilitation rates, prisoners serving shorter sentences can be released after one-third of their term instead of 40%. Those convicted of violent or sexual offences become eligible for release at the halfway point rather than two-thirds.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said public safety and victim support remain its “top priority.” Ministers noted a £700m investment in probation by 2028 will enable the largest expansion of electronic tagging ever, with offenders subject to strict licence conditions, enhanced supervision, exclusion zones, and curfews.

They also cited £550m being invested in victim support services, with work underway to establish a new victim helpline.

The spokesperson added: “This government is addressing the prison crisis it inherited – constructing 14,000 additional prison places and reforming sentencing to ensure dangerous criminals remain incarcerated. Without this decisive action, prisons would run out of space entirely by November, making it impossible to detain serious offenders.”

Amelia Handy, head of policy at Rape Crisis England & Wales, stated: “Many of the women and girls we support have waited years for court proceedings and sentencing. For victims and survivors to learn their abusers will serve even reduced terms feels unjust and unfair.”

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