Job search with a criminal past in UK

Three-quarters of newly released offenders in England and Wales are unemployed, according to figures from the National Offender Management Service, but work is often a key factor in preventing reoffending.

Research by the Ministry of Justice shows 47% of adults reoffend within a year of release, and for those serving sentences of less than 12 months this figure rises to 58%. Nearly three-quarters of under-18s are reconvicted within a year of release.

Earlier this month, the government announced reductions to the amount of time offenders are required to disclose details of low-level convictions.

The current seven-year period for sentences of up to six months will become two years and for sentences of six to 30 months it is reduced from 10 to four years. Offenders serving more than four years must disclose for life.

But for those who have recently left prison, the challenge of coming clean remains.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at  BBC News – Job-hunting with a criminal past.

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