New prison at Full Sutton will change approach to rehabilitation - Damian Hinds

That’s a huge group of people at a crucial crossroads in their lives, where the path they take next has real consequences for thousands more people beyond their family and friends.

Sadly, some of them will have returned to a life of crime, contributing to the annual £18bn cost of reoffending in England and Wales.

As Prisons Minister, it is my job to make sure that group is as small as possible.

The best way to achieve that is to create a prison system that provides offenders with the skills, hope and motivation they need to turn their lives around – to transform them into law-abiding, tax-paying members of society.

I’m clear that prisons must be a punishment. But if they’re going to make the streets of Yorkshire safer in the long run, they must also get lives back on track.

That’s one reason why it’s great news that construction of a new prison at Full Sutton, near York, has officially begun. It is designed with rehabilitation at its absolute core.

But as well as a promise of safer communities, it also brings with it a significant economic boost – in terms of the construction phase and the jobs that will follow when it opens – that will be a major boon at a time of such uncertainty for many.

This prison has been designed from top-to-bottom to get prisoners ready to work.

Following the blueprint of HMP Five Wells, in Northamptonshire, the prison at Full Sutton will have a wealth of modern classrooms to teach prisoners the basic literacy and numeracy skills needed to get jobs.

Prisoners will also have access to workshops and vocational courses linked to the needs of local businesses to prepare them for life outside.

And now that we have changed the law, some of these businesses are coming forward to offer apprenticeships to prisoners for the first time, which means more offenders will have something to work towards.

This is crucial because having a job is one of the surest ways to stop prison leavers from re-offending. Research shows that prisoners who get jobs within 12 months of being released are much less likely to reoffend than those who don’t.

We’ve earmarked at least 50 construction roles at Full Sutton for ex-offenders.

Many of the sectors with the greatest demand for labour, such as construction, retail, hospitality, manufacturing and transport are already benefiting from hiring prison leavers. This is a true ‘win win’, where offenders are steered on to the straight and narrow, away from crime, and provide a pool of reliable staff that our economy needs.

Indeed, 90 percent of businesses that employ ex-offenders report they are motivated, have good attendance and are trustworthy.

We’re determined that the local economy should benefit from the prison.

That’s why companies bidding to run it will be required to pitch how they’ll work with local businesses to train-up prisoners with the skills most sought by local employers. 

I’m also hugely encouraged by Yorkshire-based businesses like Premier Modular, taking on apprentices to help with building the prison.

Damian Hinds is the Minister for Prisons and Probation.