For many years our branch has participated in the Prison Listener Scheme at nearby HMP Onley.
We help prisoners develop their listening skills so that they can provide emotional support and show empathy to any of their fellow inmates who may be going through a particularly difficult time.
One such Listener is Dale who has also used his time in prison to attend art classes and he has certainly developed a previously unknown talent. In 2022 he was encouraged to enter a piece of his work for the annual Koestler Awards which was exhibited at the Southbank Gallery in London.
In 2023 he submitted another watercolour entitled ‘Don’t just hear, listen!’ (see picture at top of page) which gained a Transformation Commendation Award. The inspiration for this came from his Listener training which obviously had a profound impact upon him.
He showed his gratitude for the training by presenting Sarah, our Branch Prison Support Officer, and the rest of our Prison Team with a short thank you note as well as donating a superb painting of a goldfinch which will be displayed prominently for all of our volunteers to enjoy.
Martin and Sarah with Dale's goldfinch painting and thank you note
The training provided by our Prison Team is based on the training that all our volunteers undertake but is adapted to the prison setting. Listeners receive a certificate and agree to follow Samaritans’ policies and values.