Probation officers vote to strike over pay, jolting early prisoner release plan

Members of the Napo union backed both strikes and action short of a strike, with overtime restrictions likely to kick in on 23 November. Walkouts would follow at a later stage, the union said. On pay, 85% voted for action short of a strike and 74% for strikes. On workloads, the split was 87% and 75% respectively.

Napo launched the ballot after ministers put 5% on the table — a figure the union called inadequate — and failed to cut workloads. It had pushed for 12% instead. General secretary Ian Lawrence said the turnout and result vindicated the campaign to claw back ground lost against other HM Prison and Probation Service staff, and reflected serious anger at a workload crisis that predated the latest early release scheme.

That scheme, launched in October to ease prison overcrowding, is expected to put about 2,500 offenders back on the streets by the end of the year — among them sex offenders, domestic abusers and stalkers. Probation officers monitor their behaviour, oversee rehabilitation, keep tabs on electronic tags and recall them for licence breaches such as entering zones designed to protect victims.

Napo says probation wages have stagnated since 2010, leaving reception staff on pay barely above the minimum wage, the lowest in the civil service. The Institute for Government reported that probation officer numbers have consistently sat 25-30% below target staffing, and that as of March 2026 nine probation delivery units — 8% of the total — carried vacancy rates of 40% or more.

The Ministry of Justice is recruiting 1,300 extra trainee probation officers for the 2026-27 financial year under a £700m investment package running through 2028-29. A spokesperson said the 5% rise follows the biggest probation pay increase in over a decade, and that contingency plans will keep offenders under the same rigorous supervision. The department said it was disappointed some members rejected the deal.