Recent, leaked documents have revealed a shortfall of 10,000 probation staff to manage offenders serving community sentences.

In particular, probation workers say the early release scheme has dramatically increased their workload. (Between 10 September 2024 and the 31st March this year, 26,456 people were released under the scheme.) 

‘These jobs are the bread and butter of probation, and the situation in terms of staffing is considerably worse than is being thought, especially at a time when the pressure on us is immense. It’s infuriating when some of us are being told it’s our fault we’re not doing enough and that we need to up our game, but actually the workload is sky high.’

Probation workers say failures to monitor prison leavers could lead to a surge in reoffending and others going off the official radar – meaning prison leavers could be completely unsupervised. Indeed, the number of offenders looked after by staff was 241,540 at the end of March 2025, an increase of 9% over a decade. 

One probation officer described the workload as ‘non-stop’, increasing until ‘you simply can’t cope’, adding: ‘It’s just overwhelming.’

For further information, click here.