The UK's newest prison has opened its doors as part of the government's £4 billion prison construction plan.

HMP Fosse Way, in Leicester, is believed to have had the UK's greenest construction process due to the use of sustainable fuels, renewable energy and electric construction machinery.

The new Category C prison will house 1,715 prisoners and create 600 jobs, in addition to the 500 created during construction work.

The build has also seen £180 million spent with construction suppliers in the local area during the project.

Fosse Way is designed to act as a 'smart' prison, following the blueprint of recently opened HMP Five Wells.

Innovative features include, X-shaped blocks with wider, shorter corridors and fewer prisoners on each wing allow frontline staff to see all cells and offenders quickly at any one time.

As well as Cells with ultra-secure, bar-less windows to help to put an end to the smuggling of illegal drugs, phones and weapons into jails.

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The prison will offer residents a range of workshops, aimed to help them rehabilitate into society as well as filling labour gaps. One such workshop involves concrete components that can provide sections for future prison builds supported by a computer-aided design education qualification. Prisoners eligible for release on temporary licence will be able to go out and work on other construction sites.

The new prison will be operated by is the second of 6 planned new prisons and will be operated by Serco following a tendering process.

Planning permission for an additional houseblock has also been secured, which will add around 250 places to Fosse Way's capacity.

Commenting on the project, The Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk, said: "HMP Fosse Way is part of our new approach to prisons – creating safe, modern places that utilise the latest technology to place rehabilitation and cutting crime at their core.

"Its opening means we are a quarter of the way toward completion of the biggest prison-building programme in more than a century.

"The cutting-edge design will give offenders every opportunity to turn around their lives, while also providing a significant boost in this government’s drive to grow the economy."

Reflecting on their involvement, Anthony Kirby, Serco Chief Executive, UK & Europe, said: "Serco is proud to have been awarded the contract to manage HMP Fosse Way for the next 10 years.

"We have a strong track record of running safe, secure prisons in the UK, Australia and New Zealand and we have put together a first class management team to run the prison, are recruiting and training around 600 people from the local community and setting up a series of industry partnerships that will all make a significant impact on prisoner rehabilitation."