THE resettlement unit at Dartmoor Prison has beaten off stiff competition to secure a place in the finals of next week?s prestigious Public Servants of the Year Awards.
#As a finalist in the uniformed services category, the unit is a step closer to clinching the overall public service team of the year award.
Claudia Sturt, governor at HMP Dartmoor, said she was ?absolutely delighted? the team from the resettlement unit had done so well.
She said staff working in the unit were a true team and to do so well in the awards was a boost to morale for everyone at Dartmoor.
Ms Sturt said it was particularly pleasing that prison staff, often regarded as the ?Cinderella service?, had done so well, as the awards were open to all types of public services.
The resettlement unit aims to encourage offenders to break away from a life of crime and become re-established in the community, and staff themselves have been at the forefront of the new approach to resettlement.
One prisoner who has been through the programme said: ?Through the dedication and commitment of the unit staff and their belief in me, hope and purpose have been restored to my once shattered life.?
The aim of resettlement is to tailor a strategy to the individual concerned, assisted by family and external agencies.
Since the unit opened last year, 23 prisoners have gone on to open conditions or back into society, with none re-offending.
The Public Servant of the Year Awards, now in their fourth year, honour exceptional teams and individuals working in the UK?s public services and are run in partnership with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountancy, the Cabinet Office and Office of Government Commerce.
The final winners and overall Public Service Team of the Year will be announced at a glittering ceremony in the Grosvenor Hotel on Monday May 10, hosted by TV?s Dermot Murnhaghan and Mary Nightingale.