Suffolk prisoners drafted in to help make PPE for the NHS
Prisoners at a Suffolk jail have reportedly been given the task of making PPE equipment for British hospital workers.
According to the Daily Telegraph, inmates at eight category B and C prisons around the country, including Highpoint near Newmarket, will start making scrubs and face visors.
It's hoped the move will save the NHS money in light of the surging prices of PPE, with the new items costing only around a third of the normal commercial rate.
It's thought the scrubs cost around £5, compared to their £15 price tag on the open market.
An initial order of 5,000 scrubs tops and 5,000 laundry bags has reportedly been placed by NHS trusts, with the prisoners receiving their normal weekly wage of £12.50 to make them.
"Staff in our NHS are doing an incredible job ... and I'm delighted that inmates are supporting them by producing equipment to help keep them safe," Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told the Daily Telegraph.
The prisoners' effort will support an initiative by the John Lewis department store which has seen some furloughed workers return to work to make clinical gowns.
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