The proportion of released prisoners who re-offend has fallen for the second year in a row.

According to the Singapore Prisons Service's (SPS) annual statistics report released Wednesday, recidivism rates, which involves those who commit an offence again within two years of their release, have been on the decline. Some 23.6 per cent of the 2010 cohort of prisoners released committed another offence after their release, compared to 27.3 per cent of the 2008 cohort.

The statistics also showed an increase in the number of inmates securing jobs even before their release. More employers have come onboard too, with more than 500 employers registering with the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) last year to offer ex-offenders work opportunities.

The report however revealed some worrying trends. The number of those admitted into Drug Rehabilitation Centres has more than doubled, from 688 in 2010 to 1,384 last year. Many of these admissions are also from younger age groups. For example, the number of admissions for those between 21 and 30 years old has increased from 510 in 2011 to 556 last year.