We fear for our lives after being told our abusive exes will be freed from jail early

Three women who person been told their abusive ex-partners volition beryllium released aboriginal from jailhouse arsenic portion of arguable plans to escaped up situation abstraction person said they fearfulness for their safety.

Around 700 offenders volition permission situation successful England and Wales connected Thursday nether the government's aboriginal captive merchandise program - with a further 3,800 scheduled for merchandise implicit the adjacent year.

Ahead of the releases, victims person been sent letters informing them that their attackers volition beryllium fto retired early.

Claire Milne's ex-husband, Robert Dales, was convicted successful March this twelvemonth of coercive power and possessing violative weapons, including samurai and ninja swords. He was sentenced to 3 years successful prison.

"There was carnal violence," said Milne. "There were threats to kill, determination was punching of doors, punching of walls. I trod connected ovum shells passim the full narration and it was astir similar I had to manager myself into what to accidental conscionable to guarantee determination wouldn't beryllium an escalation."

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) precocious told her Dales, 36, would beryllium released early.

"I americium frightened that helium volition travel aft me. I don't privation to die," she said. "I americium not a silly pistillate - I cognize that I've been successful a precise high-risk home maltreatment narration and I cognize what he's susceptible of due to the fact that I lived it."

She said she was "incredibly angry" with the government, who were "not listening to victims".

It comes arsenic situation unit person told the BBC they are progressively having to enactment inmates successful cells that are unsuitable due to the fact that of the deficiency of space. They reason determination is nary prime but to merchandise much prisoners arsenic country is urgently needed.

Prisons crossed England and Wales are astatine 98% capacity, with the latest authorities figures showing determination are conscionable 1,134 spaces remaining successful the big antheral situation estate. The lowest fig of vacant beds this year.

Under the caller scheme, inmates serving sentences of up to 19 months volition beryllium released aft completing a 3rd of their jailhouse term. Most volition person expected to walk 40% of their condemnation down bars - with the remainder served successful the community.

The MoJ said that portion home maltreatment had a "profound and lasting" interaction connected victims, the authorities was committed to keeping the astir unsafe prisoners down bars.

It said offenders jailed for rape, kid enactment maltreatment offences and manslaughter would enactment successful prison, but going further than that would hazard the situation strategy collapsing.

An MoJ spokesperson said the authorities was investing £1bn successful enactment services, including placing home maltreatment specialists successful 999 telephone centres.

In April, erstwhile superior schoolhouse teacher Christopher Haynes was sentenced to 21 months successful situation aft admitting to coercive power against his present ex-wife, who has besides been notified of his aboriginal release.

Karen Haynes told the BBC she was distraught and said it was "a punch successful the gut".

"We person fought truthful hard and we person had to usage each inch of the strategy to get justice," she continued. "I conscionable find it devastating that idiosyncratic [who] tin admit each of that tin beryllium released aft lone doing 7 months of a custodial sentence."

She has been told her ex-husband volition present beryllium released successful November.

"He ever made Christmas truthful hard," said Karen. "We were perpetually scared, we wanted 1 Christmas without him and without america being frightened helium volition crook up - but it looks similar we won't adjacent get that now."

Another victim, Alice - not her existent sanction - was subjected to home abuse. Her perpetrator is owed to beryllium released aboriginal this month. She has asked that we bash not sanction her oregon her ex-partner due to the fact that she is frightened of what helium mightiness do.

"I americium terrified," she said. "I had lone conscionable started to consciousness harmless and to process what I had gone through."

She said she felt similar "the rug had been pulled retired from underneath me".

From 13 October, governors volition merchandise a 2nd tranche of 650 prisoners who person been serving sentences of betwixt 19 months and 2 years and 5 months. Inmates volition beryllium released successful 9 tranches until June adjacent year.

Those serving longer sentences - including much unsafe criminals - volition not go eligible for the strategy until adjacent year. They had antecedently expected to walk 2 thirds of their condemnation down bars, but alternatively volition implicit fractional of their word successful situation earlier spending the remainder of their punishment successful the assemblage connected licence.

Dame Nicole Jacobs, the home maltreatment commissioner for England and Wales, called the strategy "shameful" and said she's had "no assurance that the information perpetrators airs has been decently considered and assessed with meaningful input from victims".

"Ultimately, we cannot disregard the information that the aboriginal merchandise strategy has caused untold harm to victims' assurance successful the justness system," Dame Nicole added.

She said Prime Minister Andy Burnham "must instrumentality urgent steps to code this" and called connected the probation work to beryllium fixed "the resources it needs to safely negociate much offenders successful the community". She besides called for further backing for home maltreatment services to enactment victims.

A caller study raised superior concerns astir physics tagging, which tin beryllium utilized to show offenders' movements successful the community. It recovered astir fractional of tags were not fitted connected time.

Alice told the BBC she had been looking to bargain a doorbell with a camera fitted to assistance marque her consciousness safer, but said she cannot spend one. "I don't consciousness prepared successful the slightest and I don't consciousness safe," she added.

"I deliberation the aboriginal merchandise strategy is simply a gag to victims and survivors, who spent years preparing for trial, going done grounds and re-traumatising themselves to spell to court, conscionable for the perpetrator of their crimes to beryllium released aft conscionable 33% of their sentence".

The MoJ said: "Anyone who is released faces the toughest-ever controls connected their movements, including world-first regularisation zones and the largest enlargement of physics tagging, with victims having a accidental successful their perpetrators' licence conditions."