Offenders with intellectual disabilities in prison: what happens when they leave?

Background

People with intellectual disabilities, if convicted of offences, may be sentenced to prison, but little is known about their life when they are released.

Method

This study followed up men with intellectual disabilities who were leaving prisons in England.

Results

The men were hard to contact, but 38 men were interviewed, on average 10 weeks after leaving prison. The men were living in a variety of situations and often were very under-occupied, with limited social networks. A total of 70% were above the clinical cut-off for anxiety, and 59.5% were above the clinical cut-off for depression. The men were receiving little support in the community, and many had been reinterviewed by police.

Conclusions

Community teams need to provide better support to this very vulnerable group.