Criminals released from prison could be left free to kill as overstretched probation service in crisis

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Zara Aleena was murdered in June 2022 after multiple failings by probation, including labelling her killer medium-risk Warnings about the perilous state of the probation service came as: Ministry of Justice figures for 2022 show 59 people have been convicted of murder committed while either in the care of probation or by those who had recently left supervision Mistakes within probation have been directly blamed in the murders of at least five people in the past two years One union said orders to release prisoners up to 18 days early – which have recently come into effect – are already increasing pressure on probation staff Figures show there were 2,390 fewer full-time probation officers than the required 6,780 as of June – a shortfall of 35 per cent Nearly 1,650 probation officers have quit their jobs over the past two years – a sharp rise since 2021. Two-thirds of those who quit in the last year had five or more years’ experience Speaking to The Independent, Aleena’s aunt Farah Naz said: “The compromised and overstretched probation service, coupled with officers experiencing low morale, heightens the risk of additional errors, potentially leading to grave consequences and – at its worst – a tragic recurrence akin to the murder of our Zara.” Tory MP Elliot Colburn, who chairs a cross-party parliamentary group on restorative justice, added: “While we’re waiting for investment and trainees to come through the system, how do we make sure that we are still able to deliver a good and safe level of service? “We don’t want to end up with another Zara Aleena case, and absolutely that will be going through people’s heads at this time.” But Ian Lawrence, head of the probation union Napo, warned that this risk remains “until we see politicians take steps to offer better support for the service, work with us to find ways to reduce workloads and motivate experienced staff”. One ‘completely overwhelmed’ probation worker says they plan to quit five years after joining the service as ‘a job for life’ Confronted over the huge staff vacancies and “unmanageable” caseloads by a House of Lords committee last month, Mr Chalk was asked whether the probation service could cope with any more work.