Charity highlights debt woes of ex-prisoners

Often a released prisoner finds it impossible to find a debt solution having been handed a flat rate payment of £47 to survive financially in open society, claims the organisation.

And in some cases, a wait of weeks for benefit payments to come through, coupled with bills being piled up while serving their sentence, can result in a stressful financial situation, Citizens Advice reports.

Speaking on BBC Radio Four, a spokesperson for the charity, said: “What we’re saying is they need more support, they’re not left destitute whilst they’re waiting for their benefit claims to come through.

“It seems nonsensical to leave people leaving prison with no homes to go to and penniless.”

In January of this year, Citizens Advice bureaux in England and Wales fielded 15 per cent more enquires about debt advice than they did during the same month in 2006, according to the organisation’s own figures.