Prison garden open day next month
A RARE chance to visit the prison garden at Les Nicolles is being made available to islanders this July.
There are just 40 tickets available for the open garden event on the morning of 6 July.
Guernsey Prison head of education, training and regimes Dave Le Feuvre said the prison had tried to hold an open garden every year for about the last 10 years.
‘It gives the community the opportunity to see what goes on, but it is also great for the inmates to show off some of their work. They do have a real sense of pride in their work.’
The gardening focuses mainly on fruit and vegetables. Rather than low-cost crops, like potatoes, the team focuses on high-value produce like peppers and salad greens. The vast majority goes to the prison kitchen, with a small amount is sold on a hedge veg box outside the prison.
‘They plan every year with the kitchen to see what they used lots of last year,’ he said.
‘We estimate we save the taxpayer £10,000 to £15,000 in food costs each year.’
The inmates also can work towards City & Guilds qualifications through their gardening.
The open day is taking place between 9.30am and 11am on Saturday 6 July, with ticket holders needing to arrive at 9.15am, with photographic ID. The guests will then be escorted around the gardens and enjoy tea and cake, which is included within the £10 ticket price.
Mr Le Feuvre said as it was a working prison visitor numbers needed to be restricted, but tickets always proved popular. They are sold on a first-come, first-served basis and only over 18s will be able to attend.
All proceeds will go to the Clip charity, which provides additional education for prisoners’ rehabilitation.
Email anne-marie.elliott@gov.gg for booking details.
