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<p>We are committed to ensuring offenders leaving prison have the tools they need
to turn their backs on crime - reducing reoffending and ultimately keeping the public
safe.</p><p>One year ago, we published our Education and Employment strategy, which
set out how we will transform our approach to ensure offenders develop the skills
they need to secure employment on release.</p><p>Since the publication of the Education
and Employment Strategy, we have given governors greater autonomy over their budgets
to strengthen their education provision and implemented the New Futures Network to
broker partnerships with employers, giving offenders more opportunities to work and
train while serving their sentence and increase their chances of securing an immediate
job on release. More than 230 businesses have registered to work with prisons and
set offenders on a path to employment.</p><p> </p><p>We recently made changes so that
governors can now consider Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) earlier and in more
cases meaning offenders can enter the workplace sooner. We have also invested £7 million
in in-cell telephones to allow offenders to maintain important family ties, which
is fundamental to their rehabilitation.</p><p> </p><p>It is also vital that everyone
leaving prison has somewhere safe and secure to live. Having stable accommodation
acts as a platform to accessing other services vital to rehabilitation, as well as
employment and education opportunities. As part of the Government’s Rough Sleeping
Strategy, we are investing up to £6.4 million in a pilot scheme to support individuals
released from three prisons; Bristol, Leeds and Pentonville.</p>
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