HMP Oakwood's ex-inmates 'hassle residents for directions'

MP Gavin Williamson wants shuttle buses to be introduced for released inmates, to enable them to reach Wolverhampton and Cannock

Buses are needed for inmates leaving three jails near Wolverhampton to stop them hassling residents, says an MP.

People living near Oakwood, Brinsford and Featherstone prisons are being asked for directions to bus stops by released inmates, says MP Gavin Williamson.

He wants shuttle buses to be introduced to enable them to reach Wolverhampton and Cannock.

G4S, which runs HMP Oakwood, said it would be open to the idea.

Mr Williamson said: "Local residents understand they live near a prison but they do not really want ex-inmates strolling around trying to find a way home to either Liverpool or Birmingham or Bristol or wherever they come from."

A G4S statement indicated ex-prisoners are provided with maps and bus timetables.

It said G4S had already been in discussions with the council about whether a bus route specifically serving the three prisons could be set up.

The Prison Service said it was creating a nationwide network of resettlement prisons that would see most offenders released directly into the area where they live.