In 2019, we awarded a grant of £20,000 was used to purchase bespoke play equipment for children’s visits, and to install a grassed area outside HMP Northumberland, which is adjacent to the Nepacs visitor centre.

Organisation

Nepacs (formerly the ‘North East Prison After Care Society) is based in Durham in the north east; the charity works to support positive futures for prisoners, offenders and their relatives, helping them to maintain family ties. Over the last decade, Nepacs has grown and diversified to meet the needs of families at each stage of the criminal justice system – from courts into custody, throughout a prison sentence, and then back into the community.

In 2019, Nepacs’ staff and volunteers helped more than 126,000 visitors, including some 23,000 child visitors, to north east prisons through its visitor centre services for six regional prisons. Nepacs also runs play and youth projects and a holiday scheme, and delivers training to professionals working within the criminal justice system.

playground project

HMP Northumberland is one of the largest establishments in the UK, with up to 1,400 prisoners serving sentences of between 6 months and 4 years. It is the most northernly prison in England and is remote from where most prisoners' families live (a survey showed that over 65% of people travelled more than an hour to reach the prison, most using their own cars).

The grant was used to purchase bespoke play equipment and to install it on a grassed area outside HMP Northumberland and adjacent to Nepacs' visitors centre. Visiting a loved-one in prison, can be a particularly stressful experience especially for children. Having the outdoor play area is a welcome distraction and puts children at ease, and also provides reassurance to parents and guardians. We awarded a grant of £20,000 towards the total project cost of £24,000.