PRISONERS have a chance to get back on the straight and narrow thanks to an expanding company which sells their 'inside products' to the public.

Inside Products was launched in April in partnership with the Ministry of Justice with the aim of selling services or products made inside prisons to the public and continues to expand.

Martin Brennan has been appointed as the company’s business development manager and will be responsible for its day to day running as well as generating and driving orders.

Mr Brennan of Tenbury Wells has experience from the commercial construction sector and in recent years has dedicated his time to working with at-risk or socially-excluded young people, helping teach them a trade, boost their self-esteem, and ultimately re-integrate them into the wider community.

As well as a new member of staff, HMP Featherstone in Wolverhampton has joined HMP Long Lartin, HMP Hewell, and HMP Stoke Heath in the initiative.

Potential retail outlets have also now been identified in Ross-on-Wye, Shrewsbury and Telford. These stores will stock Inside Products goods to sell direct to customers.

Local prisons have historically operated schemes which see offenders making a range of products as part of their rehabilitation and re-training – ranging from chess sets through to garden furniture.

The government estimates that the problem of reoffending costs England and Wales up to £13 billion each year, and around 60 per cent of offenders serving shorter sentences commit more crime upon release.

It’s hoped that this programme will help reduce reoffending by teaching offenders new skills and putting those skills to work within a proper business environment.

It’s also hoped that the company will help improve perceptions to would-be employers by showing both industry and the public that offenders are capable of delivering high quality products and a good, reliable service.

The company will be expected to operate at a profit and will re-invest all profits into crime prevention measures or other rehabilitation schemes.

West Mercia's police and crime commissioner Bill Longmore, whose office funded the company, said: “This project has enormous potential, and I’m very excited to see what the future holds for it. We seem to have all the pieces in place to really get started now, and it’s very encouraging to see we already have some great people, businesses and organisations that want to be a part of it.”

Martin Brennan said: “I’ve seen first-hand that if you can find the right project, and the right approach, you can really turn someone’s life around."