uk Legal, police, prison & official contact

What to do if…
someone in custody is being released soon and they have nowhere to stay

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: 20 May 2026 Last reviewed: 17 July 2026 Editorial policy UK guide

Short answer

Contact the prison or probation resettlement contact today and ask them to start the correct homelessness or housing-help route for the part of the UK the person will be released to. Make a safe first-night plan, but do not offer your address until you know any licence, bail, tag, safeguarding, or risk requirements.

Do not do these things

Don’t promise the person they can use your address or live with you until prison or probation confirms whether the address must be approved, checked, or allowed.
Don’t put your address in writing for agencies unless you truly intend it to be considered and you understand what they are asking for.
Don’t assume “no housing available” means no process exists; ask for the homelessness or housing contact to record the situation now.
Don’t wait for perfect information; start with the release date, prison, name, prison number, and the fact that they have nowhere suitable to stay.
Don’t argue with several agencies at once if you are overwhelmed; choose one named contact and ask what they have recorded and what happens next.

What to do now

Confirm the basics and keep them in one note: release date and likely time, prison, the person’s full name, prison number, and whether release is on licence, bail, tag, remand release, or end of sentence.
Ask the prison switchboard, wing staff, or probation contact for the resettlement team, housing adviser, prison offender manager, probation officer, or pre-release contact. Say: “They are being released soon and have nowhere suitable to stay. Please record this as urgent and tell me who is handling housing.”
Ask whether any address must be approved, checked, or otherwise accepted before release. Ask: “Can they be released with no fixed abode, or does their licence, bail, tag, or risk assessment require an address?” If they want your address, ask what checks are needed, who will live there, whether children or vulnerable adults are relevant, and what would be recorded.
If the release is to England, ask prison or probation to make a Duty to Refer referral to the local housing authority, with the person’s consent. Ask which council it was sent to, when it was sent, what contact details were used, and whether there is a receipt or confirmation.
If the release is to Scotland, ask the prison or throughcare contact to help the person approach the council for homelessness support before release. Ask who the council contact is, what assessment or request has been started, and whether voluntary throughcare support is being arranged.
If the release is to Wales, ask the resettlement caseworker, probation, youth justice worker, or another support worker to help the person make a homelessness application to the local council as soon as possible. Ask which council has been contacted, what has been recorded, and who will follow it up.
If the release is to Northern Ireland, ask prison staff to refer the person to the Housing Rights adviser in the prison. Ask whether a report to the Housing Executive has been made or can be made to start the homelessness assessment and housing process.
Make a first-night plan that does not depend on you housing them. Confirm the release gate and approximate time, whether they will have a phone, charger, travel warrant, ticket, money, medication, and discharge paperwork, and whether a named person is allowed to meet them.
Set one safe contact method and one safe public meeting point. If you cannot meet them, give one phone number they can use and ask the prison or probation contact what they should do immediately after release.
Ask what paperwork and ID they will leave with. If they may have no fixed address, ask the resettlement team, probation, council, Housing Executive, hostel, or support service what address can be used for benefits or appointments, rather than offering your address by default.

What can wait

You do not need to solve long-term housing today.
You do not need to decide now whether they can live with you.
You do not need every document before making the first call.
You do not need to understand every housing rule before asking for the situation to be recorded and referred.
You can deal with benefits, longer-term accommodation, belongings, and appointments after the release route and first-night plan are clearer.

Important reassurance

Release planning can feel sudden and chaotic, especially when housing has not been arranged. You are not failing if you cannot fix the accommodation problem yourself; getting the right prison, probation, council, Housing Executive, or adviser contact involved early can still reduce the risk of the person being left with no clear next step.

Scope note

These are first steps for the first hours or days around release. Housing duties, release conditions, local connection rules, risk checks, and emergency accommodation decisions differ across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and later decisions may need specialist housing, legal, benefits, or probation help.

Important note

This is general information, not legal, financial, housing, therapeutic, or professional advice. Processes and terminology vary by UK nation, prison, probation area, sentence type, risk assessment, and individual circumstances. If you cannot confirm something, use cautious wording, ask for the named contact, and focus on getting the housing situation recorded, referred, and followed up.

Additional Resources

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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