BLAKENHURST Prison is to undergo a major expansion with the building of a new wing.

The men's prison, which has 880 category B prisoners in 600 cells, is to get another 180 cells, which will create more than 60 jobs in the process.

The news is a welcome boost to the prison, which also learnt last week it had performed well in Prison Service league tables, attaining level three status out of four and meeting most of its targets.

The multi-million pound expansion will be part of a Midlands spending package for prisons passed by Parliament earlier this year.

New Governor Ferdie Parker said: "The work on the new wing could start in two weeks and be ready this time next year.

"We are overcrowded at the moment in line with other jails. It's not like the old days, but we have more than one prisoner in single cells which is unfortunate."

Speaking about the league table results Mr Parker said: "There's always room for improvement and we are anxious to see that.

"At the moment, we're getting a high proportion of prisoners coming in with substance abuse and mental health problems and we are trying to make sense of that."

In preparation for the expansion the prison is holding two recruitment days on August 7 and 13.