Research and analysis

Impact of Social Visits in Prison

Impact of prison visits on reoffending, self-harm and housing post-release, using matched analysis across time, frequency and demographics.

• From: Ministry of Justice and Lord Timpson OBE
• Published: 20 March 2026

This was published under the 2024 to 2026 Starmer Labour government

Applies to England and Wales

Documents

Impact of Social Visits in Prison on Reoffending, Self-harm and Accommodation Outcomes

PDF, 631 KB, 29 pages

Details

This analysis evaluated the impact of social visits in prison on three key outcomes: reoffending, self-harm, and securing accommodation upon release. It also examined variations across key subgroups, including time periods (pre, during, and post COVID-19), visit frequency, and demographic characteristics (age, sex, and ethnicity). To ensure robust and credible findings, the analysis employed a well-established impact evaluation method (propensity score matching) to compare individuals who received visits with a matched group who did not.

Published 20 March 2026