Over 1,900 inmates freed early from Wrexham's HMP Berwyn under emergency scheme

Key facts

Total early releases from HMP Berwyn: 1,923
National rank for early releases: Third
Scheme start date: 10 September 2024
Total releases across England and Wales (by March 2026): 70,066
Prison population on 3 August: 86,495
Operational capacity: 88,890

Background

More than 1,900 inmates have been freed early from HMP Berwyn in Wrexham under the Government’s emergency release scheme, one of the highest totals for any prison in England and Wales.

The scheme was introduced on 10 September 2024 as an emergency measure after the prison population in England and Wales reached a record high of 88,521.

It allows certain prisoners to be released after serving 40 per cent of their fixed-term sentence rather than the usual 50 per cent, but excludes anyone jailed for sex offences, domestic abuse, or serious violent crimes where the sentence is four years or more.

Current situation

HMP Berwyn has released 1,923 prisoners since the scheme began, placing it third nationally behind HMP Humber in Brough, near Hull, with 2,142 releases and Fosse Way in Leicester with 1,927.

Its total is higher than Parc B in Bridgend, where 1,621 have been freed, and Brixton in London, with 1,513, underlining the prominent role the Wrexham jail is playing in efforts to ease pressure on the prison estate.

Across England and Wales, 70,066 prisoners had been released under the current scheme by the end of March 2026. Of these, 63,291 (90.3%) were British nationals, 6,662 (9.5%) were foreign nationals and 113 (0.2%) had no nationality recorded.

Early release figures for selected prisons and national totals
Prison	Number released
HMP Humber	2,142
Fosse Way	1,927
HMP Berwyn	1,923
Parc B	1,621
Brixton	1,513

Figures are for releases under the emergency early release scheme since September 2024, as reported by the source.

Impacts

All those freed, including Berwyn inmates, are released on licence and monitored by the probation service, with electronic tagging, curfews and other conditions in place and the threat of recall if they breach those conditions.

The age group accounting for the greatest proportion of early releases is 30 to 39-year-olds (26,103, or 37.3%), followed by 40 to 49-year-olds (16,838, or 24.0%) and 25 to 29-year-olds (10,918, or 15.6%).

Shorter sentences feature heavily among those freed: 20,971 (29.9%) were serving sentences of six months or under at the point of release, 10,582 (15.1%) were serving between six and 12 months, and 10,962 (15.6%) were serving sentences of 12 months to less than two years.

Future outlook

Scenario analysis: The possibilities below are not certain predictions.

The national prison population stood at 86,495 on 3 August, some 2,026 below the record high reached in September 2024 but up from 85,761 on 29 June, a rise of 734 in just over a month.

Operational capacity across England and Wales was 88,890 places, giving headroom of 2,395.

Projections published by the Ministry of Justice in January 2026 suggest the prison population will rise to a central estimate of 88,600 by May 2028 and 92,600 by May 2030, reaching 93,300 by the end of that year, with the number of prison places expected to increase to around 96,000.

Source: leaderlive.co.uk

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