The governor of a new north-east superjail last night hit back at critics who have compared the multimillion-pound building to a luxury holiday camp.
With just weeks to go before it welcomes its first inmates, the long-awaited HMP Grampian is finally complete.
The £140million jail has been built to replace Peterhead Prison and Craiginches in Aberdeen and will be the first in Scotland to hold men, women and young offenders.
The 40-acre complex has been built on land next to the Victorian-era Peterhead Prison, which went on the market earlier this month.
Despite being welcomed by the majority of residents and politicians, the new jail has been dogged with criticism about its design, with some claiming its bright, modern facilities make it look more like a holiday resort than a high-security prison.
Yesterday, governor Jim Farish addressed his critics as he gave the Press and Journal a tour of the jail.
“I make no apologies for the design,” he said.
“My job here is to make every effort to prepare these prisoners for their return to society and the communities they came from.
“The flexible facilities we now have in Peterhead will allow us to engage with every prisoner and unlock their potential and do all we can to prevent them from re-offending.”
He added: “The staff too are entitled to work in a safe and modern environment.”
Mr Farish said almost 100 new recruits had been taken on to work at the jail, alongside workers transferred from Peterhead and Craiginches.
“They have gone through several thousand hours of training, including awareness sessions for conditions like autism and dyslexia,” he said.
“They are the most powerful agents of change who can help transform our prisoners into non-offending citizens.”
The 550-capacity prison is scheduled to take in its first inmates on March 3.