Parole Reviews
If you or someone you know has been given a date for their parole review and would like legal representation, contact Youngs Law today. We can help support prisoners with their upcoming parole reviews with free legal advice through Legal Aid.
We have a team of experienced prison lawyers, who boast a wealth of experience in dealing with parole boards. As one of the biggest prison law firms in the UK, we have hundreds of parole reviews a year and decades of experience in helping prisoners to get the best outcome at their hearing.
If you or someone you know has a parole review coming up, get in contact with us. Our prison law solicitors are more than happy to answer your queries and assist you with your matter. To speak with a member of the team please fill out a contact form on the right, Whatsapp us or call us on 033 33 582 580.
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What is a Parole Review?
A parole review is held to make the following decisions about a prisoner:
- To decide whether to release indeterminate sentence prisoners on or after the end of their tariff.
- To decide on whether to release some categories of determinate-sentenced prisoners
- To decide whether some recalled prisoners should be re-released
- To advice prison managers or Secretaries or State whether some indeterminate-sentenced prisoners are suitable for an open prison
- To advise on any other matters relating to release or recall.
Do I need a parole review for release?
If you’re serving a indeterminate sentence your release will be subject to review by a Parol Board once you have served your tariff.
Types of indeterminate sentences:
- A life sentence
- An imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) Sentence
- A detention for Public Protection (DPP) sentence
How Does The Parole Process Work?
When a prisoner reaches their parole window, a two stage process begins. The first stage is that the dossier is disclosed to all parties, and we can assist in making representations to an MCA member to consider your case for an oral hearing.
The MCA member will then either make a decision on the papers, defer the review for want of further evidence, or most commonly, direct your case to an oral hearing. This will be when the parole board independently sit to consider your case orally and hear live evidence from your Offender Supervisor, Offender Manager and any relevant people within the prison.
What Can Youngs Help With??
We can assist in the presentation and advocacy of your case to the Parole Board, and advance your argument even when there is no support for a progressive move. It may be that psychological evidence is presented to the board by a HMPPS instructed psychologist, however we can also challenge this evidence by way of the instruction of an independent psychologist.
Youngs’ prison law solicitors regularly represent clients with the following sentences at Parole Oral Hearings:
- IPP Sentences
- Life sentences
- Extended Sentences
- Recall Oral Hearings
- Pre-tariff reviews
The test that must be met is whether your risk is manageable in the community, and whether there you are such a risk that your detention is proportionate to the high risk to the public. Depending on your sentence, the parole board can either direct you to remain in closed conditions, recommend your progression to open conditions, subject to approval by the Secretary of State for Justice, or direct your release. If they direct your release, there must be a suitable risk management plan in order to satisfy the Parole Board that you can be safely released into the community.
Why Choose Our Prison Lawyers?
In the Prison Law Department at Youngs Law, we have a wealth of extensively experienced Solicitors and Legal Executives who would be pleased to provide advice, assistance and advocacy for your parole. Our Solicitors and Legal Executives regularly go in front of the parole board and advocate for client’s progressive move or open conditions, and successfully obtain successful results.
The team regularly use the reconsideration mechanism and Judicial Review procedure against the Board when they have made mistakes.
We successfully challenged the Secretary of State in the High Court for interfering with the independence of the Parole Board. We are at the forefront of all things parole.
Our prison law team is highly successful at representing all clients serving all types of sentences, irrespective of the offence committed.
When to contact us
We can advise on Parole Reviews as soon as your parole window opens, you will be notified of this by the SSJ/Prison. Contact us for any parole enquiries – even when a Parole Board hearing is approaching or has been scheduled.
