Source: FinCap
New research conducted by Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington finds that taking simple steps to enable ex-prisoners to open bank accounts would assist them in accessing housing, employment, and benefits, which would reduce the risk of re-offending.
The research, led by Senior Lecturer Victoria Stace, was commissioned by FinCap, a charitable trust which supports more than 700 financial mentors in their work helping people who are in financial hardship. The findings of Stage 2 of this work, being released today, are based on interviews with a broad group of stakeholders, including representatives from the banking sector, financial mentoring organisations, community groups, and the Department of Corrections.
“Enabling ex-prisoners to access banking services is a simple measure. It carries negligible cost to the government or banks, could help reduce crime, and save on the costs of imprisoning reoffenders,” says FinCap Senior Policy Advisor Jake Lilley.
“Without a bank account, ex-prisoners struggle to be paid for work, receive benefits, pay bills, or find housing-making it hard to live legally and independently.
“Ex-prisoners who find themselves unable to do these things are more likely to return to crime. This carries an enormous social cost to the victims and a massive fiscal cost to the government. Access to banking is a simple, effective anti-crime measure,” says Jake Lilley.
“Many prisoners either lose access to their bank accounts upon entering prison or do not have any bank account, and those attempting to open new accounts face obstacles, particularly in meeting identification and proof of address requirements. We need uniform procedures across the banking sector to improve access to banking for prisoners,” says Victoria Stace.
“We have developed a set of practical recommendations to make this happen, including:
- Corrections should ensure that prisoners have ID documents prior to release (birth certificate and a form of photo ID), and given the opportunity to apply for a bank account prior to release
- Major banks should participate in a programme that offers bank accounts to people in prison who are due for release
Every prison should have access to at least one financial mentoring service, with regular financial capability workshops for inmates. “Collaboration between Corrections, banks, financial mentoring organisations, and community groups is essential to overcoming these challenges. Ensuring nationwide consistency, addressing systemic barriers, and securing resources are critical for the successful implementation of the proposed recommendations,” says Victoria Stace.
