ABSTRACT
The most traditional state authority for the support of offenders after their release is the probation service. While assistance for persons released from prison was originally provided by social, non-government care associations with charitable objectives, probation assistance in most countries today constitutes professionalized state-run social support and falls within the justice sector. Probation officers are usually specialized in social work. Other important players in the field of prisoner resettlement are the social services at the regional level. It is important to highlight that released prisoners essentially have to "compete" with other citizens for the limited resources of the local social services, and that public opinion often does not deem them the first group that should be served. The state-run specialist aftercare services that have been introduced in the Netherlands are municipal social services that are open to all released prisoners on a voluntary basis.
