More than a quarter of criminals in Pembrokeshire reoffended within a year of their conviction or release from prison, new figures show.

Charity Catch-22 said reoffending highlights the challenges within our criminal justice system which struggles to "effectively punish and rehabilitate offenders".

Ministry of Justice figures show 772 offenders in Pembrokeshire were released from prison, cautioned or handed a non-custodial sentence in the year to September 2022. Of them, 215 went on to reoffend within a year.

This included 12 under-18s.

The reoffending rate in the area stood at 27.8% – up from 24.2% the year before.

Across England and Wales, the rate rose from 24.3% in 2020-21 to 25.8% in the October 2021 to September 2022 cohort.

Matt Randle, justice director at Catch-22, said: "Proven reoffending rates indicate that the system struggles to effectively punish and rehabilitate offenders, often due to limited resources and structural flaws.

"Systemic pressures such as staffing shortages, an overcrowded prison population, and ongoing impacts from Covid have further strained the sector."

He added a "more rehabilitative focus" in the justice system was crucial to help reduce reoffending.

Reoffending rates across the country also varied significantly depending on both the type of offence and length of sentence. The highest were for theft at 52.3%, and for adults released from custodial sentences of less than 12 months at 55.9%.

Mr Randle said: "Brief incarceration often exacerbates existing resettlement challenges, and the limited rehabilitative provisions available can leave them in a worse position upon release.

"For low-risk offenders, non-custodial sentences have shown greater success in achieving rehabilitative goals.

"However, the lack of meaningful alternatives to custody forces judges to impose custodial sentences despite their high cost, both monetarily and in human terms."

Across England and Wales, reoffenders had an average of 3.8 new offences. This was higher in Pembrokeshire, with around 4.1 each.

On average, this group had committed 17.2 previous offences.

Campbell Robb, CEO of social justice charity Nacro, said reoffending costs the UK £18 billion per year.

He said there are "basic building blocks that must be in place for people leaving prison if we want to reduce their risk of reoffending".

"Evidence shows that people are less likely to reoffend if they are in work.

"Equally, people who have left prison and are in stable accommodation are 50% less likely to commit further crimes.

"Yet, just 31% of people who leave prison are in work six months after release, and the number of people who are released from prison into homelessness has risen by a third in the past year alone."

He added: "Once we begin to acknowledge our collective social responsibility to people who come into contact with the criminal justice system, we can start to address the conditions which lead people to reoffending."

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "This Government is committed to a criminal justice system that makes better citizens, not better criminals.

"That has started by addressing the crisis in our prisons with the emergency measures set out by the Lord Chancellor last month.

"We are also strengthening the probation services, bringing on 1,000 new probation officers by March 2025. And we will be doing more to bring together prison governors and employers to help get people into work and break the cycle of crime.

"These statistics are a reminder of the scale of that task, but this new Government is committed to reducing reoffending."