Facts on Tap

The route out of prison is an obstacle course[1]: release means rebuilding family relationships, finding jobs, securing housing and readjusting to freedom[2]. Tap Social supports this crucial transition from INSIDE OUT, offering fairly paid employment and continuity during and after prison. [3] [1] For examples of some of the practical barriers faced by prison leavers see https://www.nacro.org.uk/policy-and-research/barriers-to-effective-resettlement/ and for a focus on the financial exclusion suffered by prisoners see http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/uploads/documents/timeismoney.pdf [2] For a full discussion of many of the issues facing prisoners attempting to re-start their lives after prison see http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/OutforGood.pdf [3] For more information about our social mission and ex-offender employment programmes seehttps://www.tapsocialmovement.com/story

Half of all employers wouldn't hire someone with a criminal record[1]. The unemployment, low self-esteem and financial dependence that result are secondary punishments after prison[2]. Finding work makes a person up to 70% less likely to reoffend[3]; that's what a JOB’S WORTH.     [1] YouGov and Department for Work and Pensions (2016).   An earlier 2010 survey by Working Links of 300 employers found that only 18% had hired someone with a criminal conviction during the previous three years, and almost three quarters admitted that a conviction disclosure would culminate in rejection of that applicant in favour of a similarly qualified candidate without...

Prisoners get £76* for the journey after prison[1], and for those without homes, often just a tent[2]. Without the necessary support to rebuild, half of prison leavers reoffend within a year[3], costing the taxpayer a further £6BN annually[4]. This is a FALSE ECONOMY.    *This figure was increased in 2021. From 1995-2021, the discharge grant sat at just £46.  [1] https://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/offenders/psipso/psi-2011/psi-72-2011.doc.  This ‘discharge grant’ has not been increased since 1996.  For a detailed analysis of the inadequacy of this grant, and other financial support available to prison leavers, see https://www.clinks.org/sites/default/files/2019-05/clinks_briefing_moj_uc%26dg_V3a.pdf [2]https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-36032693; https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6774259/Prisoners-given-TENTS-leave-jail.html; https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/prisoners-given-methadone-and-tents-upon-leaving-jail-nn6p2wj96 [3] The reoffending rate is dynamic, but remains stubbornly high, 48% within one...

At £42k/year[1], a prison place costs about 10 times more than a community sentence of the same length[2], and comes with higher reoffending rates[3]. Reducing the CELL COUNT, and making greater use of day release[4], would mean savings for the taxpayer and reduced crime rates.    [1] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/841948/costs-per-place-costs-per-prisoner-2018-2019.pdf [2] No very recent data has been made publicly available by the government, but the average cost of a community or suspended sentence order was £4,135 in 2011/12 Ministry of Justice, Probation Trust Unit Costs Financial Year 2011–12 (revised), 28 November 2012 [3] Many studies have proven this fact, see e.g. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/399389/impact-of-short-custodial-sentences-on-reoffending.PDF [4] For the value of day release,...