A joint report by the Prisons Inspectorate and the Youth Justice Board found that 55 per cent of 15- to 18-year-olds in young offender institutions (YOIs) anticipated problems with getting a job when they were released compared with 49 per cent in 2011/12.
Meanwhile a smaller proportion of young men reported knowing where to get help across the range of problems they anticipated on release, including finding accommodation, getting into school or college, help with money and finances, help claiming benefits, and accessing health services.
The findings will fuel concerns about resettlement provision for young people leaving custody – with the proportion of young people reoffending within a year of leaving the secure estate currently running at 70.7 per cent.
The survey also found that a smaller proportion of young men said that they received visits from family or friends – 79 per cent compared with 97 per cent in 2011/12.
Fears have previously been raised that young people are being held further from home due to the decommissioning of several YOIs in recent years as numbers held in custody have fallen.
The survey also highlighted the vulnerability of young people held in the secure estate – with a third of young men having been in local authority care, and nine out of ten reporting having been excluded from school.
However the survey did highlight a number of improvements in YOIs, with young people reporting that conditions and their treatment had improved.
The number of young men reporting that they felt safe on their first night increased to 82 per cent from 78 per cent in 2011/12, and a smaller proportion of young men reported that they had been physically restrained – 30 per cent compared to 37 per cent in 2011/12.
Nick Hardwick, chief inspector of prisons, said the survey showed that young people appear “better able to navigate the experience of custody itself than in the past”.
He added that there are “significant minorities” of young people for whom this is not the case and that variations across establishments are too great.
But he expressed concern that young people are more anxious about how they will manage after release.
“They want to get a job and stay out of trouble but too many do not know where to go to get the help they need,” he said.
Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said YOIs remain an unhappy place for young people.
“Some things may have improved in the detention of children and young people, not least the drop in numbers behind bars, but no one can be satisfied with institutions where nearly a third of children have experienced restraint and significant numbers feel unsafe and isolated,” she said.
Lin Hinnigan, chief executive of the YJB, said that the improved results show that good work is being done.
“However, we remain concerned about the significant minority of young people, whose experiences are less positive than others, including those from minority ethnic backgrounds or those who are particularly vulnerable for other reasons,” she said.
“We will continue to work with providers to improve the experience of these young people.
“The Youth Justice Board is also committed to improving resettlement when young people leave custody in order to improve their life chances and to reduce reoffending.”
