The Ministry of Justice has set out a multi-part justice package linking prison security, drug recovery, employment on release, housing support and community payback. Announced by Lord Chancellor Alex Norris on 28 September 2026, the measures are framed around a single policy aim: cutting reoffending by tightening control inside prisons and improving the conditions people face when they leave. For policy and operational teams, the announcement matters because it does not treat reoffending as a single-service issue. The department is tying together prison safety, treatment, work, accommodation and unpaid work in the community, with each strand backed by separate delivery tools and performance claims.
On prison security, the Ministry of Justice said the next phase of a £6.5 million UK Research and Innovation investment will support new work on counter-drone technology. Technology firms are being invited to compete for up to £900,000 to test systems aimed at protecting staff and stopping contraband entering prisons. The announcement follows a separate £35 million package set out in June 2026 for the most at-risk prisons, including heavy-duty window grilles. The department said there were 1,497 recorded drone incidents at prisons in England and Wales in the year to March 2026, underlining why ministers are treating drones as a direct security risk rather than a marginal problem.
The package also expands Incentivised Substance-Free Living units to 12 more prisons by the end of 2027/28, taking the total across the estate to 100. The Ministry of Justice said 88 prisons are currently funded for the model, which provides dedicated accommodation for prisoners who commit to living without illicit drugs. According to the department, the units combine regular drug testing with support to remain substance-free and, where needed, recover from addiction, including access to Mutual Aid organisations. The Ministry of Justice cited research showing that prisoners on effectively run units were more than 30% less likely to be involved in violence, self-harm or disorder. That makes the expansion as much a prison safety measure as a treatment measure.
On employment, ministers are extending the Future Skills Programme to strengthen routes from prison into construction work. Around 750 prisoners are expected to benefit, with training and work experience designed around sector needs and new Construction Academies linked directly to employers in the community. The department said eligible prisoners may also gain work experience on Release on Temporary Licence, subject to risk assessment, before moving into jobs after release. Ministry of Justice evidence states that ex-prisoners with a job are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, yet only 36.5% of prison leavers were in work six months after release in the year to March 2026. The policy case is clear: ministers are trying to connect training more directly to real vacancies rather than offering stand-alone prison education.
Community Payback is also being recast around visibility and local nomination. The Ministry of Justice said greater priority will be given to tough and visible projects put forward by members of the public, including graffiti removal, litter picking, clearing wasteland and improving public spaces, with a new framework intended to create a more consistent approach across England and Wales. The department said more than 1.1 million hours of Community Payback were completed in the three months to December 2025, up 5% on the same period a year earlier. Ministers are also developing plans to train supervisors as NVQ assessors so that skills gained through unpaid work can count towards nationally recognised qualifications. In practical terms, this shifts Community Payback further towards a dual purpose: visible punishment and employability support.
Housing is the final major strand. A new digital system, Find and Manage Accommodation, is due to be rolled out nationally to give prison and probation staff a single service for locating suitable accommodation and related support for people leaving custody. The Ministry of Justice linked the reform to published evidence on reoffending. Adult offenders released without accommodation had a reoffending rate of 72%, compared with 38% for those with accommodation. At the same time, the department said 83% of prison leavers were housed on the night following release in the year to March 2026. That suggests the policy problem is not only first-night provision, but the quality and stability of accommodation after release.
Taken together, the announcement is less a single new programme than an expansion of several existing strands under one public message. Counter-drone procurement, substance-free units, construction pathways, digital housing support and revised Community Payback rules each sit in different parts of the justice system, but ministers are presenting them as a joined-up reoffending strategy. The test now moves from announcement to delivery. For prisons, probation providers, local authorities, training organisations and employers, the key questions will be timing, coverage, staff capacity and whether the department publishes clear outcome measures beyond activity totals. The package sets out a broad operational direction; its success will depend on whether these separate measures produce measurable changes in prison safety, employment and stable resettlement after release.