Five years on since HMP Prescoed's 'language and play' courses were developed, Monmouthshire County Council's Leader, Peter Fox, has praised the effect it has had on children and prisoners. The language and play scheme is a programme for young children and their parents focusing on encouraging the early development of language and communication skills. HMP Prescoed, an open prison with 170 male inmates near Usk, is one of the first prisons in Wales to run the courses. The courses were developed by the Basic Skills Agency in Wales and have been run by Monmouthshire County Council at the prison. Prisoners focus on subjects such as the importance of talking and playing in everyday routines, sharing books and stories, enjoying rhymes and songs and starting to write. Peter Fox said: "I want to commend the work that our staff do to help prisoners understand the significance of their role as a dad in their children's education and upbringing. They are encouraged to think about the effect that being in prison has on their kids and how they can maintain a positive relationship with them while inside. "The Welsh Assembly recognised the value of the work being done in their Excellence Wales Awards in March and I'm positive that the progress made at Prescoed has improved the lives of families all over Wales." Beth Watkins, Monmouthshire County Council's Learning and Play co-ordinator, said: "The success of the scheme at Prescoed Prison has been in maintaining communication between prisoners and their children. "Often, when a prisoner is released, he comes back to a home that has moved on or changed in a way that is quite difficult to adjust to - this can make it much more likely that he will re-offend. If a prisoners is up-to-date with what's going on at home during his stretch inside, adjusting back to normal life will be easier with the support of his family. "Prisoners are encouraged to read for their kids, not just for themselves and to write their own stories. One dad learned so much from the sessions that he became a play group leader inside and he helped to set up practical activities for the other dads." As well as writing stories, dads can make CD recordings of stories which they send home for their children, along with the book. This is part of the 'Storybook Dads' charity project, run at HMP Dartmoor. Feedback from families is very positive about this as a way for dads to remain familiar especially with very young children. Beth continued: "What's great is that the costs in money are low – just staff time and whatever we can borrow from local nurseries and other organisations. The benefits to the families are huge." Comments from dads and partners who travel to attend have been very positive: "I've found this course has shown me that there will never be enough time in the day to spend with my baby." "I've found this course very helpful and I have picked up a lot of ideas of ways to get involved more with my kids in ways they would enjoy and will learn at the same time." "I have learnt a lot which I will be able to put into practical use when I am released." Beth said: "It's had a positive impact on inmates' partners too. Some partners have discovered services available locally that they would never have used before such as the library service and I often contact the language and play coordinator in the area where the men live, so that they can join another group when they get out of prison."
