New rules on day release will encourage employers to work with offenders

The government has announced plans to relax prison day-release rules in a bid to create more opportunities for offenders to train with employers while serving their sentences. New rules will grant prison governors more autonomy to offer prisoners release on temporary licence to spend time working in the community and with employers. Those who pass a risk assessment will be immediately eligible for paid work. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has also announced an expansion of its work placement scheme, the New Futures Network, which aims to fill local skills gaps by providing jobs to offenders on release. Snack chain Pret (pictured) and hospitality firm Greene King are among those to have signed up to the scheme.