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PRISONERS’ PENFRIENDS
Friendships through the post Illustration: Lucy Ever wanted to have a pen pal? Someone you can write to about your day, or practice your writing with? Prisoners’ Penfriends tells you what you can expect from a pen friend and how you can join the scheme.
A
t Prisoners’ Penfriends, we provide people in prison with pen pals from outside of prison. Our penfriend scheme launched in 2003 and now operates in most prisons in England and Wales*. Our volunteers come from many different backgrounds; they are all caring individuals who are interested in the world around them and in getting to know others. Here are some frequently asked questions about the scheme.
How does it work? Once you are signed up to our scheme, your penfriend will write you letters or emails. You can reply to these by post or by using a free email reply service. Many of our penfriends write to each other for years – you can even keep writing once you leave prison if you like. What do penfriends talk about? Penfriends write to each other about all kinds of things, like giving each other book or TV recommendations, discussing
‘The letters have helped me through some dark days. Knowing there are forgiving and understanding people out there... gives me hope and faith for the future.’
