Having recently met with some of the members of the newly established HMP Berwyn 'Employment Advisory Board', it was good to be able to raise the new scheme at Ministry of Justice Questions with the Prisons Minister, Alex Chalk MP.
The HMP Berwyn Employment Advisory Board scheme seeks to bring together business leaders, prison coaches, statutory services and myself, utilising existing business and industry expertise to improve employment opportunities for individuals when they leave Berwyn. I look forward to getting stuck in with the excellent work!
You can read my question and the answer below:
Question (Sarah Atherton):
HMP Berwyn is one of the largest and newest prisons in Britain and has been chosen as a pilot site for the Ministry of Justice’s employment advisory board scheme. This scheme will bring together business leaders, prison coaches, statutory services and the MP in order to secure employment for offenders on release. I thank the Minister for backing Berwyn and invite him to Wrexham to see the businesses that are putting their faith in the justice system and to sample one of Berwyn’s award-winning custodial pies.
Answer (Alex Chalk, Minister for Prisons)
I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for her question, but I am even more grateful to her for being such a champion of HMP Berwyn and, indeed, of this important initiative. She is absolutely right: getting more prison leavers into jobs is key to cutting crime. As I have indicated before, it reduces the chance of reoffending by 9%. Of course, I would be delighted to visit her in Wrexham to see the great work of the employment advisory board. I congratulate her and all those she is working with on their fantastic work at Berwyn in the Custodial Pie Corporation, upskilling men in the hospitality industry.
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