Parole for children and young people

What is the Parole Board?

The Parole Board decides whether to give prisoners serving long prison sentences early release. Early release is also known as parole.

If you are given parole you will be on a licence. This means that there are certain things you will have to do and some things you will not be allowed to do. This should be explained to you by your youth offending team worker (YOT) and the staff at prison. You will be told that if you break the rules on the licence you may be sent back to prison. You will only get out again when the Parole Board says you are safe to come out or when your licence comes to an end.

There are five reasons why the Parole Board may need to be involved in deciding when you can be released. There are four types of sentences handed down by the Courts where the Parole Board may be involved and the Parole Board will also need to look at your case to decide on whether you can be re-released if you have been recalled to prison on one of these sentences.

This booklet tells you about the Parole Board and how parole works. You probably wont know some of the words and phrases used in this booklet, and there is a list at the end (called the glossary) to tell you what they mean.

You should always have an adult to help you with your application for parole and you are also allowed to have a solicitor to help you prepare. It is usually a good idea to get a solicitor to help you as a solicitor should know what the parole board must think about when they make a decision. You can ask the solicitor you had at your trial or you can ask your key worker or personal officer to help you to find a solicitor who can help you. Most young people under 18 will be able to get help from a solicitor for free under the legal aid scheme.

The Parole Board is an independent body that decides who may safely be released into the community and who must stay in or go back to custody.

The Parole Board deals with about 20,000 cases each year. Only a very small number of cases are about people under 18.

The Parole Board has around 170 members who are like judges. They will make the decision on your case. Each case will be looked at by three members together. Members might have worked in courts before or they might be people that have worked in prisons or
hospitals.

The Parole Board has an office in London. Decisions will either be made by members looking at papers about you or the three members will come to your prison or centre to hold a hearing where you will meet them. You never go to the Parole Boards office in London.

The law says that the Parole Board cannot let people out if they are likely to commit further offences.

If you want to apply for parole or are going through the parole process anyway, the first thing you should do is get an adult to help you. You have a right to legal advice and should ask a member of staff to help you to get a solicitor. It is sensible to get the solicitor involved as early as possible.

A solicitor will be able to look at the papers prepared about you, make sure that you understand them and work out if any extra papers need to be sent to the Parole Board. A solicitor will also be able to advise you if you should ask to have a hearing instead of the Parole Board just looking at your papers. If this is the case, the solicitor can help you to ask for a hearing. A solicitor can also help you write down the reasons why you think you should be released and explain what the Parole Board is looking for.

If you do have an oral hearing, the solicitor can come along and represent you. You may be able to get legal help for free under the legal aid scheme.

You can either contact the solicitor who represented you in your court case or you can ask staff at the prison to help you to find another solicitor. The Legal Services Commission should be able to help to find you a solicitor that is specialised in this area.

What type of sentence have I got?

How does the Parole Board makes its decision?

Some common questions

What happens after release?

The Parole Board for England and Wales

Grenadier House, 99-105 Horseferry Road, London, SW1P 2DX

Telephone 0845 251 2220