The Government has launched a new Education and Employment strategy which sets out new measures to boost prisoners’ skills while in custody and improve their chances of securing work on release.
Key measures include prison governors being given the power to commission education provision that provides offenders with the skills that they need and employers rrequire. Programmes will be tailored to meet labour market requirements in the prison’s local economy. A vocational route, the Prisoner Apprenticeship Pathway, will be introduced.Â
There will be a renewed focus on encouraging offenders to take up work opportunities in prison. A consultation on how to get more prisoners into the workplaces while on Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) has also been launched.
The strategy also sets out how offenders will be helped to find jobs on release. A new body, the New Futures Network, will work with employers to generate job opportunities.
