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Probation is when you serve a court sentence in the community, and can include unpaid work or being supervised after coming out of prison

• Overview

  Probation means you’re serving your sentence but you’re not in prison. You…

• Meetings with your offender manager

  When you’re on probation you may have meetings with your offender manager.…

• If you break the rules of your probation

  You could go back to court if you break any rules of your probation. For…

• Being taken back to prison

  You can be taken straight back to prison if you have been released on…

• Ask to be released again on probation

  If you have been taken back to prison and think you should be released on…

• Updated: 25 April 2019

Engage with our reform programme, get involved and stay updated on progress.

• Updated: 8 June 2021

Probation Trust reports and accounts for the period 1 April to 31 October 2014.

• Updated: 27 March 2015

Policy and guidance for prison and probation professionals in England and Wales.

• Updated: 2 October 2025

A contract is an agreement between employee and employer setting out implied and explicit terms and conditions - written statement of particulars, collective agreements

Offenders with mental health and addiction issues will be jointly monitored by probation and NHS experts to address the root causes of reoffending.

• Updated: 9 January 2026

• Updated: 15 January 2026

This collection contains action plans produced by HMPPS in response to inspections of probation carried out by HM Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP).

• Updated: 3 December 2025

Range of detailed statistics and measures for prisons and probation for financial year ending March 2017

• Updated: 26 July 2018