As of June 30, 2026, 5,043 people had orders but no assigned equipment.
Why it matters: The figures expose operational weaknesses as England and Wales rely on electronic monitoring to manage prison capacity. They also raise questions about public protection, contractor performance and probation resources.
- Ministry of Justice data recorded 5,043 people with monitoring orders but no assigned equipment as of June 30, 2026.
- The 5,043 people represented 15% of all people with electronic-monitoring orders, according to the Ministry of Justice table.
- A further 1,596 people had equipment installed, but it generated no signal in the previous 14 days.
- Between January and April, 62% of people visited for tag fitting were fitted by the second attempt.
Ministry of Justice management information recorded 5,043 people without assigned equipment as of June 30, 2026. The figure represented 15% of all people with electronic-monitoring orders, as calculated in the Ministry's table.
The group included 2,704 people on electronically monitored court bail, 1,585 with post-release licence conditions, 608 with court-sentence requirements and 146 in the immigration cohort.
The data does not show that every case resulted from probation staff failing to act. The most common recorded reason was that the person was not at the address, accounting for 27% of cases. Installation or equipment issues accounted for 18%. Other possible causes included property-access problems, withdrawal of consent, medical reasons, custody status and missing records.
The same Ministry table recorded 1,596 people with installed equipment that generated no signal in the previous 14 days. That does not establish that all 1,596 people currently had no functioning monitoring. Possible causes included non-compliance, interference or damage, technical faults and power disruption.
The table also recorded that 62% of people visited for tag fitting between January and April were fitted by the second attempt. In this measure, “within two attempts” means the fitting was completed by the second visit or attempt, and the denominator is people visited for fitting, not visits.
The National Audit Office report said the system was not working as intended, citing weaknesses in governance, data quality, efficiency and breach responses. Gareth Davies, the Comptroller and Auditor General, said electronic monitoring was “central to managing pressures on prisons” but was creating public-protection risks.
Serco handles fitting and monitoring, while Allied Universal Electronic Monitoring supplies tags and the monitoring system. The NAO report said demand could rise by up to 22,000 additional tagged people a year from 2027. It also reported that the government had allocated up to £175 million for expansion through 2026-29.
By the numbers
- 5,043 - people with monitoring orders but no assigned equipment as of June 30, 2026
- 15% - share of all people with electronic-monitoring orders represented by that group
- 62% - share of people visited for tag fitting who were fitted by the second attempt
Yes, but: The figures describe recorded equipment and fitting outcomes, not necessarily deliberate non-compliance or a complete absence of monitoring in every case.