Offender management statistics quarterly: April to June 2022

Question 1

1.  Population

Accepted Answer

The prison population stood at 81,309 on 30 September 2022.

The sentenced prison population stood at 66,102 (81% of the total); the remand prison population stood at 14,507 (18%) and the non-criminal prison population stood at 700 (1%).

Figure 1: Prison population, September 2002 to 2022 (Source: Table 1.1 and previous Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publications)

Figure 1: Prison populations, September 2002 to 2022 (Source: Table 1.1 and previous Offender Management Statistics Quarterly publications)

Remand prison population

Between June 2016 and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the remand population was under 10,000. Since the start of the pandemic, it increased and this quarter’s figure of 14,507 is the highest figure in at least 50 years. Recent industrial action by barristers is likely to have also contributed to this record figure. The untried prison population rose by 15% (to 9,711) when compared to the end of September 2021 whilst the convicted unsentenced population rose by 5% (to 4,796) over the same period.

Most of those in custody on remand were being held for either: violence against the person (28% of the untried population and 17% of the convicted unsentenced population); or drug offences (25% of the untried population and 35% of the convicted unsentenced population).

Sentenced prison population

The sentenced population was 66,102 which is a 2% increase from the same point 12 months earlier. Broadly speaking, there were increases in the sentenced population serving sentence bands of ‘less than 4 years’ and decreases in the numbers of those serving ‘4 years or more’ (apart from a 2% rise in those serving the longest determinate sentences of 14 years or more and a 11% rise in those serving an Extended Determinate Sentence). The rise in the number of people serving shorter sentence lengths was primarily driven by a 9% increase (to 2,089) in the ‘less than or equal to 6 months’ band and a 15% increase (to 1,625) in the ‘greater than 6 months to less than 12 months’ band when compared to September 2021.

Population and Offence group

While sexual offences is one of the largest groups amongst prisoners serving immediate custodial sentences, the population had been falling since it peaked in mid-2018. However, over the past year, the number has risen gradually again, with a 6% increase (to 12,536) in the 12 months to 30 September 2022.

Three in every ten (31%) inmates serving an immediate custodial sentence have been convicted of a Violence Against the Person (VATP) offence. This proportion has increased from the ‘one in four’ (25%) level seen in recent years.

Extended Determinate Sentences (EDS)

EDSs constitute a custodial term, the majority of which is served in prison, followed by an additional extended period of licence in the community. They can be imposed if the offender is found guilty of, or has a previous conviction for, a specific sexual, violent or terrorist offence. On 30 September 2022, 6,976, prisoners were serving such sentences; an 11% increase compared to the same time last year.

Indeterminate sentences

As at 30 September 2022, there were 8,551 (8,220 male; 331 female) unreleased prisoners serving indeterminate sentences (Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) and life sentences). This represents a slight overall decrease (-1%) when compared with 30 September 2021.

The number of unreleased prisoners (7,114) serving life sentences has increased by 2% compared to one year ago whereas the number of unreleased IPP prisoners fell by 13% to 1,437. At point of sentencing, offenders are given a minimum time period (“tariff”) that they must serve in prison before they can apply to the Parole Board for release. The majority (55%) of the remaining unreleased IPP prisoners have been held for more than nine years beyond the end of their tariff.

The number of recalled prisoners serving life sentences increased by 10% to 726 when compared to September 2021 whilst the number of recalled Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners saw a 7% increase to 1,453.

Recall to custody

The population recalled to custody (10,448 prisoners) has increased by 13% relative to the total a year earlier. The increasing recall population is likely driven by a combination of factors such as a longer-term increase in the average length of determinate sentences and an increase in the number of people serving indeterminate sentences or sentences with an extended licence. This results in more people being out on licence and thus more people being available for recall.

Foreign National Offenders (FNOs)

There were 9,671 (2,986 remand, 6,051 sentenced and 634 non-criminal) foreign nationals held in custody as at 30 September 2022; representing 12% of the total prison population. The number of FNOs in the prison population has decreased by 1% compared to 30 September 2021, driven by a 34% fall in the number of non-criminal foreign national prisoners. The most common nationalities after British Nationals in prisons are Albanian (13% of the FNO prison population), Polish (8%), Romanian (8%), Irish (6%), Lithuanian (4%), and Jamaican (4%).

Question 2

2.  Prison receptions and admissions

Accepted Answer

15,944 prisoners were received into custody as first receptions in the latest quarter.

10,048 were remand first receptions, 5,836 were sentenced first receptions and 60 were civil non-criminal first receptions.

Offender First receptions

The total number of first receptions between April and June 2022 was 5% higher than the same quarter in 2021. The number of first receptions has increased this quarter but still remains lower than pre-pandemic levels.

There were 2,647 first receptions of foreign nationals during Q2 2022, which is 5% higher compared to the same quarter in 2021. The representation of foreign nationals amongst first receptions has remained the same since 2020, around 17% of first receptions were foreign nationals. The five foreign nationalities with the highest numbers of first receptions in the latest quarter were: Albanian (420), Polish (319), Romanian (297), Irish (141), and Lithuanian (121). When taken together, these five nationalities accounted for just under half (49%) of the 2,647 first receptions of foreign nationals in Q2 2022.

Prison admissions

As compared to the same quarter in 2021, the number of untried, recall and sentenced admissions increased – untried by 10%, recall admissions by 3% and sentenced by 2%. The number of convicted unsentenced admissions decreased by 2%.

When considering immediate custodial sentenced admissions by offence group, violence against the person and drug offences had the largest number of sentenced admissions overall. The largest overall increases, as compared to Q2 2021, occurred in the sexual offences group, up by 14%. As compared to females, males made up a larger proportion of sentenced receptions across each offence, but there are certain offences where this difference was more pronounced- sexual offences and summary motoring (see figure 2 below). The largest representation of females was in the fraud offence group (they accounted for 15% of all immediate custodial sentenced admissions for fraud offences).

Figure 2: Representation (percentage) of male and female immediate custodial sentenced prisoner admissions in each offence group between April and June 2022 (Source: Table 2.5b)

When compared with the same quarter last year, the sentence length bands with the largest increase in the number of admissions were sentences of length lower than 12 months with a 6% increase.

Former Members of the Armed Forces

When individuals are first received into custody, they complete a Basic Custody Screening (BCS) process. This serves to identify their needs in areas including employment, childcare and healthcare. As part of this process, they are asked whether they had served in the armed services. Between April and June 2022, 139 matched individuals first received into custody answered that they had served in the armed services - this represented 2% of those who provided a response to the question at the point of their first reception during the latest quarter.

Question 3

3.  Releases

Accepted Answer

11,478 offenders were released from custody in the latest quarter.

11,359 releases from determinate sentences and 119 from indeterminate sentences.

Prison releases from custodial sentences

The number of prisoner releases between April and June 2022 was 1% lower than the same quarter in 2021.

Broadly speaking, compared to the same period in 2021 there were increases in the number of releases from short sentences (a 4% increase in releases from ‘less than 12 months’ sentences), and decreases in releases from determinate sentences of 4 years or more (a 14% annual decrease). Over the same period there was also a 13% decrease in the number of releases from indeterminate sentences.

Releases on Home Detention Curfew (HDC)

The number of offenders released on HDC in the latest quarter dropped by 3% compared to 12 months ago, to 2,208. The number who might have been eligible for HDC over the same period was 9,770, up 6%.

Releases on Temporary Licence (ROTL)

Most ROTL was suspended for much of the pandemic period. HMPPS has, however, worked closely with public health authorities to re-introduce access to ROTL^{[footnote 2]} when and where it is safe to do so, and accounting for the changing national restrictions.

As a result of these changes to prison regimes, ROTL numbers have continued to increase. There were 94,396 incidences of ROTL during the quarter ending June 2022, which represents an 85% increase compared to the same quarter in 2021, though remaining below pre-pandemic levels. Of the ROTL incidences in the latest quarter, two-thirds (68%) were for ‘Work Related’ reasons.

The number of individuals receiving at least one incidence of ROTL between April and June 2022 also continued to rise following the changes to prison regimes, up 36% from the same quarter in 2021. 4,127 individuals were released on temporary licence in the latest quarter.

There were 183 Temporary Release Failures between April and June 2022. This is a rise of 39 compared with the previous quarter, and a rise of 95 compared with the same period in 2021. TRFs as a proportion of temporary release incidences stood at around 1 in 500 between April and June 2022.

Prisoner transfers

Between April and June 2022 there were 18,286 incidences of prisoner transfer, with 15,596 prisoners having at least one incidence of transfer. Both figures represent increases since the same period of 2021, with rises of 11% and 8% respectively, as transfers continue to recover towards pre-pandemic levels.

Question 4

4.  Adjudications

Accepted Answer

There were 38,277 adjudication outcomes between April and June 2022.

This is an increase of 4% on the same quarter a year ago. Additional days were awarded as punishment on 642 occasions in this quarter.

Two-thirds (67%) of adjudications were proven.

The number of proven adjudications has increased by 2% (to 25,596) from the same quarter in 2021, and there was a 4% rise in the number of punishments (to 44,283).

Offences of ‘unauthorised transactions’ and ‘violence’ were the largest contributors to the increases described above. A third (33%) of proven adjudications were for offences of ‘disobedience and disrespect’, with the next largest category being ‘unauthorised transactions’ (28%). The number of proven adjudications for ‘unauthorised transactions’ and ‘violence’ offences rose by 16% (to 7,117) and 8% (to 4,181) respectively on the same quarter of the previous year. This has been offset by a fall in other categories, in particular ‘wilful damage’ and ‘disobedience and disrespect’. They fell by 9% (to 2,688) and 6% (to 8,518) respectively on the same quarter of the previous year.

The increase in the number of proven adjudications for violence in comparison to Q2 2021 has coincided with the relaxing of measures implemented in March 2020 to reduce physical interactions amongst inmates and prison staff due to Covid-19. However, the level of violence is still lower than the figures recorded up until 2019 where averages exceeded 5,000 proven adjudications per quarter.

Additional days were awarded as punishment on 642 occasions between April and June 2022; this is a 6% rise compared with the same period in 2021. A total of 10,006 days were awarded in the latest quarter – this is a 4% rise compared with the same quarter in 2021 (9,632 days between April and June 2021). Although the number of offences for which a punishment of “additional days” was awarded rose, this is still lower than the figures observed prior to the pandemic (typically between 4,000 and 5,000 awards of Additional Days per quarter).

While the overall number of adjudication outcomes increased by 4% in comparison to Q2 2021, this has remained at a lower level since the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pre-pandemic averages for adjudication outcomes were around 50,000 per quarter.

A number of policy interventions were made to suspend discipline hearings requiring an Independent Adjudicator (IA) between 23 March and 22 June 2020. Referrals to IAs, which are subject to new guidelines have now resumed but are still held virtually. This impacted the number of referrals (972 for the quarter), which is far below the averages recorded before the lockdown. Measures that were implemented to support operational delivery since the start of the pandemic have now been decommissioned. However, should outbreaks occur, protective measures have remained in place^{[footnote 2]}.

More information about the trends in Adjudications between 2011 and 2018 can be found in ‘The Adjudications Story’ publication.

Question 5

5.  Licence recalls

Accepted Answer

The number of licence recalls between April and June 2022 was 5,726, of which 340 were recalls from Home Detention Curfew (HDC).

The total number of recalls increased by 7% compared to the same quarter in 2021.

The total number of quarterly recalls trended upwards between October-December 2016 and July-September 2019. There was a marked increase in the number of quarterly recalls from early 2018 to July-September 2019, mostly due to increases in the number of HDC recalls and recalls of offenders from determinate sentences of 12 months or more. These numbers then began to fall, and the downward shift was accelerated by the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions. Following relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions in early 2021, the number of quarterly recalls has generally gone up with the latest figure being an increase of 3% from the previous quarter and an increase of 7% from a year ago. Nevertheless, the number of recalls in each of the last 7 quarters has been lower than levels just before the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Following relative stability up to January-March 2020, the number of quarterly recalls of offenders released from a sentence of under 12 months noticeably began to fall, falling below 2,000 for the first time since July-September 2016, partly due to the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions. Although relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions led to increases in these numbers, they have continued to stay below 2,000. The latest figure (1,975) represents an increase of 7% from the previous quarter and an increase of 16% from a year ago.

The pattern in quarterly recalls of offenders with a sentence of 12 months or more (including those with indeterminate sentences) more closely mirrors that of the overall quarterly recalls as this group usually constitute about 2/3 of overall recalls. Between April and June 2022, there were 3,751 recalls of such offenders, representing an increase of 2% from the previous quarter and an increase of 3% from a year ago.

Ethnicity proportions in quarterly recalls have remained relatively stable, with about 8 in 10 recalls being white, 8% being black and 5% being Asian.

There usually is more than one reason for recalling an offender on licence. Of recalls in April-June 2022, about 30% involved a charge of further offending, 72% involved non-compliance, 29% involved failure to keep in touch, and 24% involved failure to reside.

Between April and June 2022, 100 IPP prisoners and 54 prisoners serving a life sentence were rereleased, having previously been returned to custody for a breach of licence conditions. These together represent a decrease of 23% from the same quarter a year ago.

Offenders not returned to custody

Of all those released on licence and recalled to custody due to breaching the conditions of their licence between April 1999 and June 2022, there were 2,161 who had not been returned to custody by the end of September 2022.

A further 16 offenders had not been returned to custody as of September 2022 after recall between 1984 and April 1999, meaning the total number of offenders not returned to custody at the end of September 2022 was 2,177. These figures include some offenders believed to be dead or living abroad but who have not been confirmed as dead or deported.

Of the 2,177 not returned to custody by 30 September 2022, 365 had originally been serving a prison sentence for violence against the person offences and a further 65 for sexual offences.

Question 6

6.  Probation

Accepted Answer

The total number of offenders on probation (i.e. court orders and pre/post-release supervision) at the end of June 2022 was 243,127.

This represents a 5% increase compared to the end of June 2021.

Latest figures on probation starts and caseload show that the trends in probation starts are now at similar levels to those observed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic^{[footnote 3]}; this follows increases more broadly since operational restrictions,^{[footnote 4]} introduced in response to the pandemic, were lifted in late spring 2020.

As at 30 June 2022, there were 243,127 offenders supervised by the Probation Service (Figure 3), representing a 5% increase compared to 30 June 2021 and a less than 1% increase compared to 31 March 2022.

Between the end of June 2021 and the end of June 2022, court order caseload increased by 12% from 102,767 to 115,456, with the number of offenders on a community order (CO) and those on a suspended sentence order (SSO) with requirements both increasing by 11% and 16% respectively.

The total caseload of offenders supervised before or after release from prison at the end of June 2022 was 132,396, representing an increase of 1% compared to the end of June 2021.

Figure 3: Number of offenders under Probation Service supervision, 30 June 2012 to 30 June 2022 (source for 2018 to 2022: Table 4.6; source for years prior to 2018: Table 4.7)

Between April and June 2022, 38,504 offenders started court order or pre-release probation supervision (Figure 4), representing decreases of 6% on the previous quarter and of 6% compared to the same quarter a year ago.

Between April to June 2022, the number of offenders starting court orders, specifically, decreased by 7% on the previous quarter and decreased by 6% compared to the same quarter a year ago. The number of offenders starting COs decreased by 8% to 15,468 compared to the previous quarter and decreased by 6% compared to the same quarter a year ago. Meanwhile, the number of offenders starting SSOs with requirements decreased by 6% to 8,138 compared to the previous quarter and decreased by 6% compared to the same quarter in the previous year. Additionally, over the latest quarter, there were decreases of 5% and 6% in the number of offenders starting pre-release supervision compared to the previous quarter and the same quarter in the previous year respectively.

The numbers of offenders starting Probation Service supervision decreased across most offence groups. However, compared to the same quarter in the previous year, increases in those starting COs and SSOs due to committing a violent offence against a person were observed between April to June 2022 (increases of 16% and 15% respectively). Consequently, the number of offenders on the Probation Service supervision caseload for a violence against the person offence as at 30 June 2022 also increased by 56% to 8,895 for COs and by 30% to 8,391 for SSOs compared to the caseload as at 30 June in the previous year.

Figure 4: Number of offenders starting supervision under the Probation Service, July to September 2019 to April to June 2022 (source: Table 4.1)

Between April and June 2022, 24,694 requirements started under COs and 14,525 requirements started under SSOs, representing decreases of 6% and 4% respectively compared to the same period in the previous year. Over the same period, rehabilitation requirements started under COs and SSOs decreased by 3% to 10,508 and by 4% to 6,526 respectively and remains the most common requirement included within a CO or SSO.

Under COs and SSOs, there were increases across a number of other requirement types compared to the same quarter in 2021. Within COs, mental health, alcohol treatment, drug treatment and unpaid work requirements increased by 28% to 319, by 16% to 925, by 12% to 922 and by 7% to 7,954 respectively. Under SSOs, mental health, alcohol treatment, drug treatment and unpaid work requirements increased by 59% to 181, by 10% to 517, 6% to 583, and by 7% to 3,944 respectively.

Since the roll-out of the alcohol abstinence and monitoring requirement at the end of 2020, the numbers started have risen; figures for April to June 2022 show increases of 50% to 684 and 55% to 367 under COs and SSOs respectively compared to the same quarter in 2021.

In terms of the most frequently used combinations of requirements, rehabilitation requirements combined separately with alcohol abstinence, alcohol treatment, and drug treatment requirements increased by 33%, 25% and 17% respectively under COs between April to June 2022 compared to the same period a year ago.

Under SSOs, rehabilitation requirements combined separately with alcohol abstinence and drug treatment increased by 35% and 16% respectively, while an accredited programme alongside rehabilitation and unpaid work requirements increased by 28%.

Of the 13,252 COs and 5,852 SSOs terminated between April and June 2022, 74% and 77% respectively were terminated successfully, i.e., ran their full course or were terminated early for good progress.

In the quarter April to June 2022, the total number of pre-sentence reports (PSRs) prepared by the Probation Service decreased by 4% to 20,002 compared to the previous quarter and by 13% compared to the same quarter in 2021.

Furthermore, 89% of immediate custodial sentences proposed in PSRs resulted in that sentence being given in the year ending June 2022, representing the highest concordance between sentence proposed and sentence given.

Question 7

Further information

Accepted Answer

This publication presents quarterly data trends.

Our statisticians regularly review the content of publications. Development of new and improved statistical outputs is usually dependent on reallocating existing resources. As part of our continual review and prioritisation, we welcome user feedback on existing outputs including content, breadth, frequency and methodology. Please send any comments you have on this publication including suggestions for further developments or reductions in content.

Accompanying files

As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release:

A ‘Guide to Offender Management Statistics’, which provides comprehensive information about data sources and quality, as well as key legislative changes.
A document outlining the ‘Users of Offender Management Statistics’
A set of data tables, covering each section of this bulletin, including a prison population data tool.

National Statistics status

National Statistics status means that official statistics meet the highest standards of trustworthiness, quality and public value. All official statistics should comply with all aspects of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. They are awarded National Statistics status following an assessment by the Authority’s regulatory arm. The Authority considers whether the statistics meet the highest standards of Code compliance, including the value they add to public decisions and debate.

It is the Ministry of Justice’s responsibility to maintain compliance with the standards expected for National Statistics. If we become concerned about whether these statistics are still meeting the appropriate standards, we will discuss any concerns with the Authority promptly. National Statistics status can be removed at any point when the highest standards are not maintained, and reinstated when standards are restored.

Contact

Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:

Tel: 020 3334 3536

Email: newsdesk@justice.gov.uk

Other enquiries about these statistics should be directed to the enquiries team within the Data and Analytical Services Directorate (DASD) of the Ministry of Justice:

Daniel Hawksworth, Head of Prison Statistics

Ministry of Justice, 102 Petty France, London, SW1H 9AJ

Email: EDS@justice.gov.uk

Next update: 26 January 2023

URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/offender-management-statistics-quarterly

Alternative formats are available on request from EDS@justice.gov.uk

Further contextual information regarding the impact of the Criminal Bar Association action on court cases can be found in the most recent Criminal Court Statistics publication here:‘https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-court-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2022’. ↩
‘https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-national-framework-for-prison-regimes-and-services’. ↩ ↩²
Total caseload as at 31 December 2019 (i.e. the last reporting period prior to the pandemic) stood at 247,759‘https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/981212/Probation_Q4_2020.ods’ ↩
This included temporary court closures ↩


81,309 prisoners in England and Wales as at 30 September 2022	This represents a rise of 3% compared to the same period in the previous year.
15,944 first receptions into prison between April and June 2022	This is a rise of 5% compared to the same period in 2021.
11,478 releases from sentences between April and June 2022	This is 1% lower than the same period in 2021.
38,277 adjudication outcomes between April and June 2022	This was 4% higher than the same period in 2021. Additional days were awarded as punishment on 642 occasions – this was a 6% rise compared to the same period in 2021.
5,726 licence recalls between April and June 2022	This is a 7% increase on the same quarter in 2021.
243,127 offenders on probation at the end of June 2022	This number increased by 5% compared to the number of offenders supervised as at end of June 2021.

Offender management statistics quarterly: April to June 2022

Applies to England and Wales

1. Population

Remand prison population

Sentenced prison population

Population and Offence group

Extended Determinate Sentences (EDS)

Indeterminate sentences

Recall to custody

Foreign National Offenders (FNOs)

2. Prison receptions and admissions

Offender First receptions

Prison admissions

Former Members of the Armed Forces

3. Releases

Prison releases from custodial sentences

Releases on Home Detention Curfew (HDC)

Releases on Temporary Licence (ROTL)

Prisoner transfers

4. Adjudications

5. Licence recalls

Offenders not returned to custody

6. Probation

Further information

Accompanying files

National Statistics status

Contact

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Applies to England and Wales

1. Population

Remand prison population

Sentenced prison population

Population and Offence group

Extended Determinate Sentences (EDS)

Indeterminate sentences

Recall to custody

Foreign National Offenders (FNOs)

2. Prison receptions and admissions

Offender First receptions

Prison admissions

Former Members of the Armed Forces

3. Releases

Prison releases from custodial sentences

Releases on Home Detention Curfew (HDC)

Releases on Temporary Licence (ROTL)

Prisoner transfers

4. Adjudications

5. Licence recalls

Offenders not returned to custody

6. Probation

Further information

Accompanying files

National Statistics status

Contact

Is this page useful?

Help us improve GOV.UK

Help us improve GOV.UK