GOURMET mushrooms are being grown by prisoners at Dartmoor as part of a brand new innovative training scheme.

The pilot scheme, the first in the country, began earlier this year as a way of providing prisoners over 50 the chance to gain qualifications and build on their transferable skills in horticulture.

Since then the scheme, created by Green Shoots Associates, has proven a huge success, with prisoners gaining qualifications through Duchy College and their delicate oyster mushrooms being provided to local businesses.

Sara Rock is the business manager for Tamar Grow Local, which runs the Tamar Valley Food Hub, an online farmers' market that sells local produce, including the mushrooms.

She said: 'The mushrooms are amazing and the whole project is worthwhile. When we visited the prison, the prisoners said it gives them a purpose and a reason to get up in the morning, helps them gain a qualification and work in a team.

'I was blown away by how enthusiastic everyone was, not only by Green Shoots, but the prisoners involved and the prison officers. It really is a brilliant project.'

Green Shoots Associates came up with the 'mushroom' model to deliver a quality work- based experience for prisoners and decided that the perfect location would be HMP Dartmoor in Princetown.

Mark Packer, business development manager of Green Shoots, said: 'We chose Dartmoor Prison as it's iconic and the management at Dartmoor is proactive and supportive.

'The scheme gives prisoners qualifications, experience and helps them all work together, which is vital.

'The prisoners have taken real ownership of the scheme. Everyone has said it's the best project they have been involved in.'

Green Shoots is soon to branch the scheme to HMP Bristol and Guys Marsh Prison due to the success at Dartmoor.

The initiative has even gone on to be presented with a sustainable development specialist project leader award from the European Social Fund, for its highly innovative business model and excellent use of resources and recycling.

Growing the sought-after mushrooms takes approximately six to eight weeks, starting with growing them in used coffee grounds in converted old prison cells, set up as a growing environment.

The mushrooms spores are mixed with the coffee grounds and placed in a polythene bag in the incubation room for four weeks until the whole bag turns 'white' with the mushroom mycelium. After this the bag is moved to the fruiting room, where it is wetter and cooler, and within ten days, the mushrooms have grown and are harvested — and within this period a total of two to three harvests occur.

Danny Branley, head of learning and skills at the prison, said the success and establishing of the scheme was thanks to a joint initiative between Tribal, Green Shoots, Duchy College and HMP Dartmoor.

'We have a class of eight prisoners over an eight week course as part of training, where they focus on marketing, business management, packaging and business enterprise,' said Danny.

'We are the first one in the prison service to do this — the prisoners come in every day and work as they love it and enjoy every minute.'

The public now has the option to buy ready made oyster mushrooms starter kits from the Dartmoor Prison Museum in Princetown or from the Tamar Valley Food Hub online, for approximately £12.

William Dodds, the acting governor of HMP Dartmoor, said: 'In its first year this award winning scheme will give 50 prisoners NVQ qualifications in business administration and horticulture and any profits made will be invested back into the prison.

'I want Dartmoor prison to be a place where staff work to rehabilitate offenders through education and training.

'By using their time constructively, offenders can learn new skills that will help them find work which we know is a major factor in preventing re-offending.