Victim Support Offender Release Helpline logo

About the helpline

Hearing about changes to prison release arrangements may bring up difficult feelings or concerns.

Whether you have recently heard about these changes or have been affected by them for some time, you do not have to cope with this alone.

Need support?

Our Offender Release Helpline can provide:

  • Emotional support if you’re feeling worried, anxious, upset or overwhelmed.
  • Information and practical guidance about coping with the impact of the changes.
  • Help exploring options for further support.
  • Referrals to specialist services where appropriate.

We understand that information about an offender’s sentence or release can be difficult to receive. Everyone responds differently, and there is no right or wrong way to feel.

Our Offender Release Helpline can provide emotional support and practical guidance, but we cannot tell you whether a specific offender is affected by these changes or provide information about an individual case.

If you are part of the Victim Contact Scheme, your Victim Liaison Officer is usually the best person to speak to about information relating to the offender's sentence or release.

If you're not part of the Victim Contact Scheme but have been affected by these changes, the government will try to contact you directly to see if you wish to request information. For advice on how you can request information yourself, you can contact our Offender Release Helpline on 0808 168 9280. 

If you would like to talk to someone, our helpline advisers are here to listen.

Call: 0808 168 9280

Opening hours: Monday-Friday 09:00-17:00 (excluding bank holidays)

When you call us, you can request an interpreter so you can speak to us in the language you’re most comfortable in.

Relay UK is a free service that helps people who are D/deaf, hard of hearing, or speech impaired to communicate over the phone. You can use it to contact our Offender Release helpline.

A Relay UK assistant can:

  • type what the other person is saying so you can read it
  • read your typed responses aloud if you cannot speak

The service is free to use. You’ll only pay your normal call charges.

Relay UK can be used through a smartphone or tablet app.

Find out more about Relay UK and download the app.

We’ve partnered with interpreting service Convo, so people who are D/deaf or hard of hearing can contact us using British Sign Language (BSL).

This service will connect you to a professional BSL interpreter and you can tell them you want to contact Victim Support’s Offender Release Helpline. Find out more about this free service.