GREATER work to address the challenges faced by inmates transitioning from jail to the outside world has been demanded by the chief inspector of prisons.

David Strang made the call as he highlighted the case of one prisoner at HMP Kilmarnock – a situation he said could have occurred in any prison in Scotland. He said one inmate admitted from court on a shoplifting offence, had been living in a tent for eight weeks since his last release because there was no accommodation for him.

The man later deliberately shoplifted in the hope that he would be caught and sentenced, believing it to be the only way for him to access a dry bed, warmth and shelter.

Strang acknowledged that returning to the community from prison is “challenging” and said many individuals need more direct support than what is available to them. He called for all agencies involved in reintegration of prisoners back into their communities to work collaboratively “in order to ensure the best possible outcomes”.

Referring to the specific example of the prisoner, who had previously been at HMP Barlinnie, he said: “These are not the circumstances we want people leaving prison in 21st-century Scotland to have to face. However, it is not a situation that can be resolved by the prison service alone.

“This requires a dedicated and co-ordinated response by all those involved in supporting people in the criminal justice system and beyond.

“It was also disappointing that there were no dedicated throughcare support officers at HMP Kilmarnock.

“It is unsatisfactory that prisoners in HMP Kilmarnock were being denied the same level of throughcare support that they would have received if they had been located in a different prison in Scotland.”