Convicted criminals will soon face bans from a variety of public and social spaces in a bid to discourage convicts from reoffending.
The plans will allow judges to curtail various freedoms when sentencing offenders to “make streets safer” for the general public.
Restrictions will include bans from attending football matches, driving limitations, and confinement to specific, local areas.
There will also be bans from pubs, clubs, and other public or community areas.
Judges are currently able to issue similar community and freedom based bans if they relate to the crime committed, such as imposing a football match ban if the criminal offended at a game.
However, the new change will allow criminals to be sentenced with a ban that may not relate to the criminal charge.
Offenders with a history of drug misuse will also face similar restrictions, alongside an expanded compulsory drug testing programme whilst on probation.
Criminals with no known history of drug abuse will also be included in the upscaled drug testing regime in the future, the Government says.
Shabana Mahmood, Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, hopes this will deter offenders and reoffenders from committing crimes and help ensure prisons can prioritise places for more serious offenders.
She said: “When criminals break society’s rules, they must be punished. Those serving their sentences in the community must have their freedom restricted there too.
“These new punishments should remind all offenders that, under this Government, crime does not pay.
“Rightly, the public expect the government to do everything in its power to keep Britain safe, and that’s what we’re doing.”
The Government says artificial intelligence will also be introduced to help probation staff dedicate additional time to more serious offenders.
Additionally, the Probation Service is set to receive a £700 million investment increase by 2028/29 to further support improvements.
The sector currently has an annual budget of £1.6 billion.
Employment in the Probation Service is also rising, in line with the Government’s commitment to recruit 1,300 probation officers in 2025.
Last year, the service successfully recruited 1,000 new probation officers.
The Government hopes that by boosting support within the sector and introducing social restrictions to limit criminals’ freedom, the rate of reoffending will begin to decrease.
In a report published last month, the rate of reoffending criminals in England and Wales reached 28 per cent.
Pulled from July to September 2023, the figure is a 1.5 per cent increase from the same window in the previous year.
As well as aiming to prevent reoffending, the Government has also introduced 2,400 prison places since July 2024.
Alongside this is a £7 billion investment to fund 14,000 more prison spots as the criminal population increases.
This is part of the 10-year Prison Capacity Strategy, which includes building four new prisons and remodelling existing facilities.
Featured image via Amie Johnson on Unsplash
