Few offenders complete the entire period of custody to which they have been sentenced. Some are released automatically at a certain point in their sentence and some, for longer custodial sentences, following an application for parole.
On release, the offender will be supervised in the community by North Wales Probation for the remainder of their sentence. In some cases, serious offenders may be on licence for the rest of their lives, and are monitored through the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements, MAPPA.
This involves all Criminal Justice Agencies and others including health and housing in the planning and implementation of risk action plans. Regular MAPPA meetings are held to discuss progress. Using this process, offenders who pose a serious risk to the community can be recalled to prison quickly.
The licence may contain a requirement for the offender to participate in unpaid work or Basic Skills training. It may also contain restrictions, which could involve banning the offender from certain areas or requiring them to live at Approved Premises (Hostel). In North Wales we have two Approved Premises, Ty Newydd in Bangor and Plas y Wern in Ruabon which can accommodate up to 46 offenders in total.
Offenders who do not comply with the terms of their licence will be recalled to prison.
