We provide skill development and purposeful activity to custodial settings. We train adult prisoners/offenders to become assistance dog trainers during their time serving sentences in prison estates, helping to create a changed social identity.

In providing modern, positive reinforcement-based training to the dogs on the programme, the prisoners promote responsible animal welfare and effective dog training without violence and confrontation, leading to learners increased empathy, self-regulation, social skills, compassion, responsibility and respect.

The people on the Restart Dog Project have, through attachment and interaction with the dogs, gained insights into identifying their own behaviour and the skills to change. Understanding the emotional capacity of the dogs and how this affects their behaviour offers a greater insight into how prisoners/offenders manage their own feelings of frustration and self-control.  The skills learnt during the programmes have been a key part of the graduates’ social reintegration. At the same time, the prisoners have the opportunity to become well trained professionals within the dog training industry gaining qualifications up to a Level 4.

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The programme is not funded by the taxpayer, and instead is paid for by the Prisoners Fund, which is raised by work that Prisoners undertake during their time in the custodial system for other organisations. Prisoners who apply to participate in the Restart Dogs program need be engaged in rehabilitation programs and be engaging in the prison system. Our objectives are to develop selected prisoners as dog trainers, to produce dogs suitable as assistance dogs for people in need. As one of our participants eloquently said;

“I have lost my freedom, but I can actually help someone else to get theirs back” - Restart Dogs learner