Iceland prison plan deserves a chance

The supermarket chain's decision to open a branch at HMP Oakwood will likely be met with a mixture of bemusement and suspicion that our prisons are becoming too soft.

Certainly, the idea of jails being kitted out with their own shopping mall will certainly raise one or two eyebrows, and there are obvious questions about the wisdom of allowing violent prisoners to bulk-up on protein powder from the in-house sports shop.

However, on balance, we are inclined to give the scheme the benefit of the doubt. Oakwood is not a high-security jail, but rather a training prison which is supposed to be about preparing inmates for their release into the community. And the chances of them reoffending once they are freed fall dramatically if they are able to gain secure employment.

Iceland's Second Chance scheme has seen more than 330 ex-prisoners given jobs on their release, and if the Oakwood branch of Iceland gives inmates the skills needed to hold down a job when they leave jail that can only be a good thing.