Upside is Scotland’s only national voluntary throughcare service, involved with preparing people for release from prison and providing them with ongoing support in the community. Engagement is voluntary, creating the conditions for trust, motivation, and meaningful change. By combining this with practical support, Upside helps reduce reoffending and contributes to safer, more connected communities. Funded by the Scottish Government, Upside operates as a partnership between eight voluntary sector organisations: Access to Industry, Action for Children, Apex Scotland, Barnardo’s, Circle, Families Outside, Sacro, and Turning Point Scotland.
With over half of Scotland’s prisons operating at ‘red’ status, we fully understand the need for Emergency Early Release (EER). However, Upside's ability to prepare and engage with those being released has been significantly curtailed by the compressed timescales and volume of people involved. The often-complex needs faced by much of the prison population means that effective support relies on building trust, fostering relationships and co-ordinating advocacy with multiple agencies, all of which take time and staff capacity. EER has reduced the pre-release planning period to significantly less than the 12 weeks generally provided by Upside workers to develop robust and realistic plans for positive outcomes. Movement of people in prison between establishments, and cancelled appointments and visits – often without, or at short notice – also erode this valuable preparation time and reduce the efficiency of staff efforts.
Our chief concern is the impact this limited pre-release time has on people’s ability to access essential supports on release, and the resulting increased risk of reoffending because of poor outcomes. Around 70% of those being released in the first tranche of EER have requested Upside support. Of these, just over a third are known to be returning to a tenancy, with the remainder either recorded as homeless or staying with family or friends. This alone presents a significant challenge, but stable housing is just one area of concern. Unemployment, poor health, substance use, financial issues and family relationships are all key factors to be addressed if we hope to achieve successful reintegration.
Upside has been involved in the EER process since its early stages and is fully engaged with the Scottish Government, Scottish Prison Service (SPS) and community agencies to ensure this process is as joined-up as possible. We have sought to maximise engagement with the individuals involved and are distributing phones, liberation packs of essentials and information to help maintain contact and continuity of support after release.
We will continue to do all we can, but the current environment is extremely challenging for Upside, SPS and our statutory and third sector partners. Prisons cannot operate at their current level of capacity, and although EER may offer temporary relief, it is not a sustainable solution. The pressures in our prisons reflect pressures across society. Too many people enter the justice system because of problems that begin elsewhere, including unstable housing, untreated trauma, poor health, and gaps in care and recovery support.
Community-based alternatives are a vital part of the solution, offering practical routes to rehabilitation that address these issues in the community rather than behind bars. Scottish and international evidence consistently shows that well-resourced community sentences achieve lower reconviction rates than short prison terms, while delivering better outcomes for individuals, families and communities. When properly funded and connected to housing, health and recovery services, these approaches help people rebuild stability, reduce reoffending and ease pressure on prisons.
To achieve sustainable change, Scotland must expand the use and capacity of community alternatives, embedding them as a default response where safe and appropriate, and resourcing them to deliver the outcomes that evidence shows they can achieve. But community alternatives cannot succeed in isolation. Keeping Scotland’s prison population at a safe and manageable level and ensuring our justice system remains effective, proportionate and fair also depends on fixing the wider failures that drive people into custody. That means sustained investment across sectors like housing, health, care and recovery, alongside services like Upside that help people rebuild their lives safely in the community.
