An initiative will be launched at HM Prison Wandsworth in the New Year to teach staff and prisoners mindfulness.

Plan B is a program for reform from Waves Mindfulness, a company which aims to teach people to be mindful, and will begin in January 2017 and last for six months.

If the scheme is extended, prisoners will then learn to become mindfulness teachers which may lead to career opportunities upon release.

Prison can be a difficult and stressful environment for both prisoners and staff and mindfulness, the psychological process of becoming more self-aware by focusing on one’s feelings and thought processes, can help people cope with resulting stress and anxiety.

Founder and mindfulness leader Sonya Russo said: “Prison is a harsh environment and mindfulness can give people the coping skills to manage.

"The initiative can make prison a better place to work in and a better place to be.”

The course, offered to staff and prisoners, will include a two hour class every week and two hours of meditation a day.

The length of the scheme will be beneficial as it will allow prisoners to develop a program of mindfulness that caters to their specific needs.

Sonya, 35, has suffered from anxiety and addiction in the past and said that mindfulness completely turned her life around.

Ms Russo believes the scheme could, for the participants that “really take it on board”, reduce reoffending and give prisoners career opportunities in the future and they could even come back and help other prisoners.

In the last few decades there have been numerous empirical studies that have shown strong evidence that mindfulness can be very beneficial in terms of reform.

As meditative practices develop, self-awareness grows and the prisoner’s capacity to accept responsibility for their actions also grows which can be key in reducing reoffending.

Other benefits include greater anger management skills, significant reduction in aggressive behaviour, increased self-esteem and lower substance abuse problems.

Alex Hewson of the Prison Reform Trust said: "It is good to see the governor at Wandsworth using his powers to try new things and experiment.

"Existing schemes where people in prison teach each other new skills, such as reading and maths, are already showing the potential—giving people purpose and helping to turn around lives.

"We hope that both staff and prisoners at Wandsworth will see similar benefits."

Speaking about Plan B Governor of HMP Wandsworth Ian Bickers tweeted: "We are very proud to support such an excellent initiative- much to do but every contribution helps us in our journey to reform."

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