A Dartmoor Prison-based project which enables inmates to remain in contact with their children through the power of stories has scooped a national charity award.

Storybook Dads enables fathers in prison to record bedtime stories with a charity worker which are then sent to their children back home. Its success, which began as in a small way at Channing’s Wood Prison in Devon, then from a cell at Dartmoor Prison in Princetown, has seen it spread to prisons nationwide.

The charity has now won the top prize in the Children & Youth category at this year’s Charity Awards ceremony in London - the longest-running and most prestigious awards scheme in the charity sector.

Sharon Berry, of Saltash, who created the project in 2003, said: “We are delighted to announce that we won the top prize in the children and youth category at this year’s Charity Awards, We accept it on behalf of everyone across prisons nationwide who help us to deliver this project.

“All the shortlisted charities were fabulous and we are truly honoured and delighted to win our category.  Winning this award will help to raise our profile so that we can continue to help as many prisoners’ children as possible.” 

The benefits of the stories to children separated from their fathers are recognised by mothers back home who say sons and daughters can be disturbed by not seeing their fathers and think their dad does not love them anymore. Hearing from fathers has improved behaviour of children, helped them sleep and maintained their relationship despite being apart. The project also helps inmates become better fathers on release and motivates them to read to them on release.

The project also employs some ex-prisoners to edit the stories from home after release, to help them get back into society again and lead a crime-free life. Storybook Dads, which also supports mothers in prison, was presented with a trophy at the ceremony hosted by writer Baroness Ayesha Hazarika.

Matthew Nolan, chief executive of Civil Society Media which organises the awards, said: “Storybook Dads won our overall award 18 years ago, and since then it has gone from strength to strength, growing both in scale and impact. It is a shining example of the enormous difference that charities make to people’s lives.”

Pictured: Top row from left : Colin May, Hannah Child, Kizzy Wroath , Claire Hart,  Sarah Rawlins. Bottom row from left: Kate Marriot, Sharon Berry, Sarah Cobley, Terri Bailey, Lauren Morgan