Around 650 prisoners are due to leave prisons in England and Wales on Tuesday 13 October in the second wave of early releases, the BBC reports. The government scheme aims to ease the overcrowding crisis, but the union Napo warns that it is increasing pressure on probation officers who supervise offenders in the community.
The releases scheduled for 13 October 2026 are expected to cover prisoners serving sentences of up to two and a half years. According to the BBC, the new rules allow prisoners to leave after serving one third of their sentence, rather than half. The figure of around 650 is an estimate, and the announcement does not mean that all the releases have already taken place.
This is the next stage of a scheme being introduced gradually for prisoners serving progressively longer sentences. In the first wave, on 1 October, around 700 prisoners serving sentences of less than 19 months were released early, the BBC reports.
Leaving prison does not end the sentence
Early release does not mean the sentence has ended or that supervision stops. The BBC says those released should generally be subject to electronic monitoring and other supervision conditions for the next third of their sentence. These are the expected arrangements, rather than confirmation that every person leaving prison has already been fitted with an electronic tag. This wave of releases applies to England and Wales, not the whole of the UK.
The probation service is responsible for supervising offenders outside prison. Napo, which represents its staff, says early releases are placing enormous pressure on probation officers. Workload is one of the union’s concerns alongside its dispute over pay.
According to the BBC, Napo members are due to vote on industrial action the following week. The ballot could lead to a strike, but no decision to begin one has yet been made. The Ministry of Justice has offered probation officers a 5% pay rise, while the union sought 12%. The ministry describes its offer as fair.
