CHANGING times have forced the sale of livestock and machinery from Dartmoor prison?s 200 year-old farm, bringing the end of an era.

A downturn in agriculture and a change in training needs resulted in 300 cattle, 1,400 sheep and 600 lots of farming machinery going under the hammer at the sale last Tuesday.

Over 2,000 people attended the auction at the prison, which was the biggest single farm sale in the Westcountry this year.

A herd of dairy cows was sold for a top price of £1,071 a head, a Ford 8210 tractor went for £5,800, a Highland cow and its calf went for £1,680 and sheep made up to £70 each.

All but 40 of the 1,600 acres of farmland will be handed back to the landowner, the Duchy of Cornwall Estates, and farm buildings will be utilised for other training purposes including stone walling and hedge laying.

The prison?s modernisation programme will see a move from some traditional farming activities, where employment opportunities are declining, to modern horticultural, landscaping and ground maintenance skills where job prospects are greater with the majority of prisoners coming from urban areas.

Former farm manager Derek Webber, who had still been working part-time at the site, said it was a very sad day for the staff.

?We had a lot of fond memories over the years but training in agriculture and jobs are diminishing at a very fast rate and we have to move with the times,? he said.

?Working with animals has been good for the prisoners because for many it was the first time somebody or something was reliant on them for food and water and it has been a very therapeutic experience.?