Revisiting the inaugural ‘Think Through Nutrition in Prisons’ project
We’ve been lucky to partner with some real visionaries in our work. Suzy Dymond-White, former Governor at HMP Eastwood Park, allowed us into her prison in 2019-20 to run a pioneering nutrition pilot and continues to be a great nutrition champion today!
The 3-month pilot involved a small group of women who worked with Eastwood Park catering managers and the Think Through Nutrition team to devise a menu high in nutrient value, targeted to brain health and low on sugar, simple carbs and processed food. We also ran education sessions that included information about the effect of food on the body and brain, gave the women a chance to learn about food labelling, and how to prepare tasty, healthy, low-cost dishes. There was a strong educational element to the programme so that participants could take the learning from custody into their family lives.
Eastwood Park now has a team of women taking a more active role in the catering delivery. There are still improvements to be made, but the project made the first big steps towards a healthier and more satisfying diet for the women at HMP Eastwood Park.
The results are better than expected!
Two years on, we caught up with Suzy to reflect on the nutrition pilot and why it was so important.