Explore Prisons

In 2002, Explore expanded its focus into prisons, in particular, Young Offenders and Juvenile Institutions. The Explore Prison programme is consistent with the philosophy and policy of the Prison Service and National Offender Management Service to rehabilitate offenders and to prevent re-offending. An offender released into employment, accommodation and a lasting and stable relationship is statistically seen as being less likely to re-offend.

Explore initially undertook a pilot development programme within three prisons to adapt its learning method to be entirely relevant to the needs of the offender and to establish good practice within the requirements of the Prison Service. From three prisons, Explore now operates regular workshops in other prisons. In HMPS Warren Hill where the organisation conducted its initial prison work, twenty three workshops have now been completed.

Explore’s workshops in prisons provide additional educational opportunity for the development of communication and decision-making skills. They contribute greatly to the “purposeful activities in association (free) time; the “decency agenda” and the chaplaincy programme.

Only workshops are organised in prisons and involve small groups of 6 to 12 participants. The workshop operates on an entirely voluntary basis over a period of weeks with each session lasting at least 2 hours facilitated and supervised by an Explore trained adviser-coach. It enables the group to meet and question a number of different couples.