Images by Rob Browne

First published on 23/09/24

“I would rather reoffend and go back to prison than be homeless. When I was behind bars it’s scary. There’s violence happening, and it’s hard. But out here you are all on your own. ”

These are the words of one former prisoner, Warren Rees, who is living underneath a cold, wet bridge and has been released early from Bridgend Parc Prison, a prison where there were 17 inmate deaths in 2024.

Underneath the bridge, which has cars running over it, you can hear the sound of the vehicles above, and there is little protection from the wind, which rushes through beneath. Warren has positioned his tent on some stone, because the grass in the area becomes too damp. He is also located just next to a river, which he occasionally bathes in.

Describing what it is like to sleep there, he noted: "The ground is hard, and it's not easy to sleep on. Sometimes you can't sleep at all and you're just living day by day."

A few years ago, I participated in a charity sleepout, which was a far cry from experiencing the real realities of homelessness, as the organised event took place under a train station roof. But I can still remember the hardness of the floor and the sorrounding noises. Considering this, I can only begin to imagine the discomfort people like Warren are in on a daily basis.

He is one of the 1700 prisoners released earlier in September 2024 after mounting pressure in UK prisons, and although he wants the chance to have a fresh start in life, things are not so simple.

Warren had been given jail sentences twice in the last year. First, he pleaded guilty in Cardiff Magistrates' Court to possession of an offensive weapon and was sentenced to 18 months in prison on September 25, 2023. A few months later, he was in Cardiff Crown Court on January 25. There he pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent and was given a sentence of 30 months. He served time first in HMP Cardiff and then Parc Prison, Bridgend, and would still be inside were it not for the early release programme.

Before spending time in prison, he was living in council housing which he lost his tenancy for when he went back into prison this year. When he was released, he spent his first night under the bridge with no sleeping bag, tent or blankets. He is now relying on the support of local charities who have provided him with supplies including a tent and blankets, but he is still wearing the same clothes he left prison in.

He said: "It's hard, to be honest. It's better in prison. No worries. Until it's time to come back out. It's not a life. I'd rather be in a house living a full life and you toss and turn at night. You're worried in case someone does something to your tent but in prison the door's locked, job's done."

Read this piece here.