Bracknell Man's Freedom Short-Lived in London

The mother of a Bracknell man freed after 21 years says she feels she has "lost him again" after he was placed in temporary housing miles from home.

Luke Ings was released last month after judges at Wolverhampton Crown Court quashed the indefinite sentence he was given as a 17-year-old in 2006, ending more than two decades behind bars. He is 38.

His reunion with family was short-lived: he has been housed in east London because, Mr Ings said, there was nowhere appropriate in Bracknell. "I feel like I'm back in prison again to be honest."

He says he's in supported accommodation where staff are helping him with Universal Credit, banking and everyday tasks, but being far from his mother, sister and brother is hard. "I can only contact my family on the phone again. At least this time we can video call."

His mother, Sam Ings, said the family were delighted to have him home but were devastated when he had to move away. "It has been great to have him home for a week but the probation service couldn't find him anywhere local to live and they placed him in a maisonette in east London."

She added: "It was in terrible condition when he first arrived. It's been a real shock for him to be out of prison, reunited with family and now suddenly living somewhere he doesn't know and he has none of his family or support network around."

A Bracknell Forest Council spokesman said: "We are not able to comment on individual cases."

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "Prison teams assess every prisoner's needs before release, working with local services to help secure housing and other support." He added: "Backed by record investment in probation, this is part of our plan to cut prison leaver homelessness, reduce reoffending and keep the public safe." The MoJ also said release teams work with probation and local authorities to arrange accommodation and referrals for employment, benefits, health and other support, and that prison leavers at risk of homelessness who are supervised by probation can be offered up to 12 weeks of temporary accommodation.

Mr Ings was originally convicted in 2006 after admitting offences including a robbery in a Bracknell underpass and an assault on a teenager in a fast-food restaurant. He was 17 when he received a detention for public protection sentence, which allowed him to be held beyond his minimum tariff until considered safe to release.

DPP and IPP sentences were abolished for new cases in 2012 but people already serving them remained subject to the regime, which has been widely criticised for keeping some prisoners behind bars long after their minimum terms. The Criminal Cases Review Commission, which referred Mr Ings's case back to the courts, said his was one of 25 IPP and DPP cases it had referred since the start of the year and represented "only a fraction of the people who remain caught up in this abolished sentencing regime".

The CCRC added: "Where we identify a real possibility that a sentence would now not be upheld, we will refer the case to the appropriate court. It will then be for the Court to decide what should happen."

Katie French, Local Democracy Reporter