DARTMOOR Prison is to get a substantial cash boost to help maintain links between prisoners and their families.
The Home Office yesterday announced funding of more than £300,000 for the Prison Advice and Care Trust (PACT) which will run a support service for prisoners? families around HMP Dartmoor, HMP Channings Wood and HMP Exeter.
Home Secretary David Blunkett said: ?We know that prisoners who keep in contact with their families are less likely to re-offend than those who become isolated during their time in custody.
?The work of this project will be vital in reducing the risk of prisoners re-offending on release ? as well as supporting their families with the problems they face.?
The project will seek to support prisoners? families by employing two family support workers based at Plymouth and Exeter to work with families of prisoners from all three establishments.
It will create family-friendly services at all three prisons, including play projects within prisons for the children, as well as relationship courses within prisons.
The project will be training ten volunteer mentors to support families pre and post-sentence.
It will also open a new visitor centre in a separate location from HMP Channings Wood for prisoner?s families which will mirror the provision at HMP Dartmoor and HMP Exeter.
Director of the Prison Advice and Care Trust, Myra Fulford said they were delighted that the Home Office had decided to award the grant. She said it would ensure the ?development and consolidation? of an integrated service for prison families in Devon and Cornwall.