Prisoners come up with colourful way to say thank you to Peterborough’s key workers

Earlier this year inmates at the jail were tasked with designing artwork to thank key workers for their efforts during the pandemic, which would then be painted on a utility box belonging to Virgin Media.

Designs were created as part of a competition run in place of art classes at the prison, which could not be held due to Covid-19 restrictions. The best designs were submitted to the city council’s Environmental Services team who chose the overall winner featuring a rainbow and the line ‘Thank you for always being there’.

The design was recently painted on the box, situated at the junction of Grange Road and Westfield Road in Ravensthorpe, by an art tutor from the prison. It has received several positive comments from people passing by and drivers honking their horns in support.

The project also received support from Ravensthorpe ward Councillors Ed Murphy, Gul Nawaz and Lucinda Robinson.

The initiative follows a previous successful collaboration between the council, HMP Peterborough and Virgin Media in 2018, when three utility boxes located near Central Park were decorated with designs by prisoners, aimed at celebrating local history, the environment and the city’s multi-cultural communities.

James Collingridge, Head of Environmental Partnerships at Peterborough City Council, said: “Following the positive feedback from the artwork project undertaken in conjunction with HMP Peterborough, this was a great opportunity to repeat that and to help celebrate the great work of the city’s NHS and keyworkers throughout the pandemic.”

Damian Evans, Director of HMP Peterborough, said: “As a local prison, projects such as these help to reinforce our links with the community and are an opportunity to highlight the positive social impact that prisons can have. The use of a variety of interventions, including education and art, helps prisoners to address the underlying reasons for their offending behaviour and to prepare for a successful transition back to the community.”