THE NUMBER of prisoners freed from HMP Berwyn under the early-release scheme has been revealed.

On Tuesday (September 10), the UK Government announced that a number of prisoners across the country would be released early in order to ease overcrowding.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the prison population of England and Wales stood at a record high of 88,521 last week, just 1,098 places below maximum capacity.

Longer sentences, failure to hit prison-building targets, and higher numbers of inmates being recalled from parole have contributed to the rising numbers of people in prisons, they said.

The Prison Officers Association (POA) has revealed the number of inmates who have been freed from Wrexham's HMP Berwyn this week.

TOP STORIES TODAY

The POA - which is the trade union for prison, correctional and public and private mental health trust service providers - says that 68 inmates have been released early from there this week.

As of Tuesday (September 10), prisoners on “standard determinate sentences” are being automatically released after they have served 40% of their sentence.

The Ministry of Justice says it expects about 5,500 people across the UK will leave prison early over September and October.

Sex offenders, and people convicted of serious violent offences, domestic violence or terrorism are not eligible for early release under the scheme.

The Leader is looking to speak to people who are being released early from prison about their experiences. If this applies to you, get in touch with us via our Facebook page or by emailing arron.evans@newsquest.co.uk.