People going into prison often face a range of problems and risks in managing their money. For example, offenders:
It can be difficult for prisoners to communicate with people to whom they owe money because of limited access to telephones and letter-writing opportunities. This can mean that debts increase, with interest and late payment charges continuing to be added on.
Most creditors will expect that people who cannot meet their usual level of repayment will offer some money, even if only a token amount. For prisoners this can be a serious problem, as they may have very little or no income with which to make repayments. Prisoners can earn a small amount in jail but that usually goes towards basic items such as toiletries.
Where people have debts they are unable to keep up with, it is worthwhile writing a letter to the company and requesting that the debt be frozen (e.g. no charges for non-payment etc).
Some prisons provide support to help prisoners set up debt repayment plans with their creditors. It is worth asking about these, but not all prisons offer this type of help, and it is important that advice is made available about which debts it is most important to service first.
It can be very expensive to make telephone calls from prison so freephone debtlines should be used by prisoners worried about debt as soon as possible. Prisoners and, where relevant, their family members or other people supporting them, should seek free, independent, confidential advice about money matters wherever they can. Access to advice varies from prison to prison. However, if you are in custody, and prison staff have not already told you where to get help, you should ask them for this information. Equally, where possible, you might want to ask a family member or friend to seek advice on your behalf.
In order to sort out debts it is very useful to have access to documents which tell you how much you owe and the account numbers and contact details of creditors such as credit card companies, gas and electric suppliers and catalogues. Friends and family might arrange to send these in the post. Sometimes friends and family can bring documents to the prison but permission must always be agreed first. Families and friends need to be aware that the post is checked and one in ten letters will be read.
Problems can arise when someone in prison lives alone because then it becomes very difficult for anyone to get hold of essential documents. In this case a debt advisor can work as a go-between between the prisoner and the creditor and request copies of statements and letters to be sent to them. The debt advisor can then send these copies on to the prisoner.
If you were receiving a benefit before you went into custody, then it is likely that you will have to close down your claim, as you will not be entitled to the benefit while in prison. There is one possible exception to this - housing benefit. Remand prisoners are allowed to claim housing benefit for up to 52 weeks, and convicted prisoners are allowed to claim if they know they will be released within thirteen weeks of going into prison. People who are on remand or will not be in for more than 13 weeks need to make a new housing benefit claim under their new circumstances
It is very important to have your benefit situation assessed as soon as possible after you go into prison. This will reduce the risk of one or more of the following things happening:
Staff in some prisons automatically tell Jobcentre Plus that a prisoner has entered prison and that their benefit should be stopped. However, you cannot assume this will happen, and it is your responsibility to make sure this information has been provided.
Anyone who is in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) should ensure that DLA are separately notified of their imprisonment, as this will not automatically happen by informing Job Centre Plus.
Sometimes benefits departments are only told that someone is in prison once they have been convicted which means that quite a lot of time can go by before benefits are sorted out. Wherever possible, ask prison staff whether they have contacted Jobcentre Plus, and if they haven't, you should contact an advice service as soon as possible or ask a family member, friend, or any support service available within the prison to do this for you.
Some benefits are suspended while prisoners are on remand (e.g. Incapacity benefit, Disability Living Allowance). If the person does not receive a sentence of imprisonment, or the case is dropped or the conviction quashed, then full arrears of the withheld benefit can be claimed on release.
Benefit and debt advice is provided in some prisons, but will vary from one prison to another in terms of:
It is worth finding out as soon as possible about the advice services you can access within prison. If it becomes clear that, for whatever reason, it is going to be difficult to make contact with an advice service in the prison, you should consider how else you may be able to deal with your situation, for instance by making contact with external telephone advice services or relying on family or friends to seek advice on your behalf.
Citizens Advice provides advice in over 40 prisons and 29 probation settings. Bureau workers provide advice on subjects including housing, debt and employment. They can also access specialist help, for example from solicitors, immigration officers and housing departments. You can find out more about Citizens Advice here. Prisoners without in-house Citizens Advice Bureaux can write to them explaining their problem. Prison staff should be able to provide the address.
Reducing Offending Through Advice (ROTA) is a Citizens Advice project in the north east of England. They can help you if you are a prisoner, or a friend or family member of a prisoner in HMP Acklington, HMP Holme House, HMP YOI Castington and HMP YOI Deerbolt. You can find out more about ROTA here.
When you leave prison you may get a travel warrant to pay for your travel back home or wherever you are planning to settle.
You can also apply for a discharge grant to help with living expenses for the first few weeks after leaving prison. This must be claimed at least four weeks before leaving prison. Some prisoners won't be able to claim this, for example prisoners under 18 or those waiting to be deported.
For 16 and 17 year olds, cash help from social services can sometimes be obtained for a 'child in need'. You can get help from the prison Freshstart team.
There are a number of key things that you will need to do when preparing and making a benefit claim before leaving prison:
Many prisoners have problems in providing sufficient proof of their identity (ID) to support a benefit claim. If you think this is going to be a problem for you, there is a government form, Form B79, which can be used as a starting point when you contact Jobcentre Plus. A copy of this form should be issued to you when you are discharged from prison, so you should double-check you have been given a B79 before you leave.
In order to claim some types of benefit, you will need a National Insurance (NI) number. If you already have an NI number but cannot locate it, you should contact Jobcentre Plus to obtain the number so as not to hold up your benefit claim. It is probably easiest in the first instance to call the central Jobcentre Plus on 0845 600 0643.
If you have never been given an NI number, you will have to apply for one, which will involve attending an interview at which your identity - and where applicable your right to work in the UK - will be checked. If your application is successful, an NI number will be sent out in writing as soon as possible after the interview.
You can apply for an NI number while still in custody, and wherever possible you should do so. In order to do this, you will need to supply proof of your identity (assuming you have this), such as a letter from a probation officer, a birth certificate, passport, travel pass with photograph, copy of tenancy agreement, or utility bills.
All prisons have resettlement units, but these vary from prison to prison in the amount of support they provide. Before leaving prison you can put in an application to see someone from the resettlement team to help you make the transition.
When you come out of prison you may find difficulty in being able to open a bank account or getting insured, or your family members may be discriminated against. Unlock, the National Association of Reformed Offenders provides a lot of information to support ex-offenders experiencing this type of discrimination. Find out more about Unlock.
Nacro, a charity that works with ex-offenders, has an advice line for resettlement which can be accessed from prison or on release. The number is 0800 0181 259. Find out more about Nacro here.
The Prison Reform Trust is an independent charity campaigning for improvements in the prison system. They have an advice and information service that takes queries from people in prison, their families and anyone needing information for a prisoner. They can be contacted through prt@prisonreformtrust.org.uk. You can find out about the Prison Reform Trust here.
The Fresh Start initiative is intended to narrow the gap between someone leaving prison and accessing the benefits to which they are entitled. Jobcentre Plus Employment and Benefit Surgery advisors working in prisons will conduct job searches on behalf of prisoners and discuss training and education opportunities with them, and will also identify appropriate benefits and inform prisoners about making a benefit claim.
Under Fresh Start, the intention is that an interview between the prisoner and Jobcentre Plus is arranged with minimum delay upon release so that the ex-prisoner can sign on for Jobseekers Allowance. It is important that ex-prisoners speak to Jobcentre Plus as soon as possible after their release in order to access any benefits to which they are entitled, assuming they have not already got things underway before release.
Prison staff or Fresh Start managers (if available) should arrange a Fresh Start interview for all prisoners wishing to claim Jobseekers Allowance on release, but if this does not happen, you should either contact the Jobcentre nearest where you are going to settle or ask an external advice/support service to do this on your behalf.
When you leave prison, there are some sources of income that may be available to you before you receive your first benefit payment.
Even if your benefit claim is being processed exactly as it should be, your first payment of Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance will not generally be made until fourteen days after your claim.
If you have spent at least fifteen days in prison, and were not either a remand prisoner or released from hospital, you will be given a discharge grant when you are released from prison. However, the size of the discharge grant is small, and you will need to think about how to ensure you have enough money in the short term.
If you know you will need money towards essential household items or for immediate short-term expenses, you can make an application to the Social Fund.
These are small interest-free loans that aim to help people who cannot meet their immediate short-term expenses in an emergency, and are often used to tide people over while their benefit claims are assessed. A decision on your claim should be made on the same day as your application is submitted. Find out more about crisis loans.
These are available to cover such items as clothes, furniture and cooking equipment. In order to be able to claim, you will have to fill out a form with enough information to allow Jobcentre Plus staff to make a decision about your claim, based on the extent and urgency of your needs. You can make a claim up to six weeks before release. Find out more about Community Care Grants.
Both Community Care Grants and crisis loans are discretionary, which means that there is no guarantee that you will be paid any or all of the money you have asked for. However, if the decision about your claim is negative, you can challenge it. It is always best to do this with expert help. Free, confidential advice on most money issues is available from Citizens Advice and other advice services.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) leaflet on benefits, Prisoners and their families, which explains the position on benefits for those entering or being released from custody is available from the DWP website.
Nacro, a charity that works with ex-offenders, has a range of advice leaflets including one on Benefits and Debt on its website www.nacro.org.uk.
Unlock is the National Association of Reformed Offenders. It supports former offenders and their families to overcome social and financial exclusion, plan for life after release and rebuild their lives after leaving crime behind in order to to break the cycle of re-offending and benefit society as a whole. www.unlock.org.uk
Action for Prisoners' Families is the national membership organisation representing the needs of organisations working with families of prisoners across England and Wales. www.actionpf.org.uk
Apex Charitable Trust seeks to help people with criminal records to obtain appropriate jobs or self-employment by providing them with the skills they need in the labour market and by working with employers to break down the barriers to their employment. www.apextrust.com
Bridging the gap works to help reduce re-offending by helping discharged prisoners settle into their communities after release. www.btguk.org