Prison chief attacks reoffending rate

The Government is failing young offenders with one in six winding up back behind bars within a month of their release, the prisons inspector warned yesterday.

Nick Hardwick blamed a lack of structure and support for young people leaving custody that all too often fast-tracks them on to the streets and back into a life of crime.

His comments came after a two-year study into how young people reacclimatise to life after prison found that release into the community without proper housing or educational support was a "recipe for disaster".