Research shows that being employed is a key deterrent to reoffending.  However, more than two-thirds of prisoners do not have jobs in the period leading up to their imprisonment and the answer to breaking this cycle has always looked bleak.  Now a new course allowing women prisoners to learn business skills to enable them to set up their own enterprises on release is running at HMP Eastwood Park in the South West of England.  Since June 2007, the SEED (Sustainable Enterprise and Empowerment Dynamics) course has taught learners all aspects of business.  Graduates now plan to set up restaurants, beauticians and stables.

Most business start-up courses are too long for short term remand prisoners like those at Eastwood Park, but SEED caters for typical remand sentences of just 7-9 weeks.  CTAD, Tribal’s educational software specialist, developed the SEED materials and adapted them for the prison environment. 

Eastwood Park is the only women’s prison in the South West of England and the local employment market therefore cannot be used as a guide to skills required, so umbrella practical courses such as SEED are ideal.  This also complements the Regional Economic Strategy targets, government targets to create thousands of additional female-owned businesses across the country. 

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