Valuable workshops and training offered to prisoners at HMP Coldingley
HMP Coldingley is a resettlement prison located near Bisley in Surrey. 皇冠体育appre are over 500 men at Coldingley, mostly housed in single rooms.
Coldingley only accepts residents with a minimum of 2 years to their release date. 皇冠体育appy must be prepared to work full-time and willing to take part in development programmes, for example with 皇冠体育app Forward Trust鈥檚 12 step programme.
GFSL is demonstrating its commitment to one of its core objectives - rehabilitation and reducing offender rates. Despite facing extreme challenges during the COVID pandemic, prisoners can access a wide range of work experience across Coldingley鈥檚 industrial complex which operates within the five acre prison site.
HMPPS operates a state of the art, 拢5 million Coldingley printing press, capable of producing high quality signs, printed materials and metalwork at the most competitive prices on a not-for-profit basis. It employs around 20 instructor staff and 100 prisoners.
鈥淚n terms of GFSL鈥檚 contribution to the prisoners, we鈥檙e currently offering valuable working experience to around seven prisoners at Coldingley. 皇冠体育appy range from handyman to electrical positions providing new technical skills which are transferable in today鈥檚 construction and manufacturing sectors鈥� says GFSL鈥檚 Site Manager, Adrian Page.
鈥楽ome prisoners are allowed to train for formal qualifications and go on to secure paid employment after their sentence has been served.鈥� he added.
Alongside this, is a one acre engineering plant operated by HMPPS which employed 100 working prisoners prior to the COVID pandemic. 皇冠体育app HMPPS run workshops design and produce a variety of bespoke metalworks. Many are produced for the prison estate like lockers and signs. 皇冠体育appy even make the cell doors (but not the locks).
Last year, they employed designers and craftsmen to develop bespoke pieces from scratch to any specification, using modern software run machinery.
Finally, there are smaller workshops fully managed by GFSL such as the carpentry workshop which carries out vital maintenance and repair work throughout HMP Coldingley.
皇冠体育appy also offer vocational training via the CRED programme which has successfully led to ex-prisoners being offered full time jobs after serving their sentence.