A new women’s community custodial unit, which will be the first of its kind in the UK, is set to open in Dundee.

The Bella Centre which focuses on “custody in the community” aims to change the way women in the justice system are supported in their reintegration back into society.

The 16-space unit which will open on August 1 is specifically designed with the needs of women in mind, and has no bars on the windows and no barbed wire or high walls and was designed to blend into the surrounding area.

Female offenders housed there will be encouraged to take responsibility for their own re-integration through community contact, access to local services and the development of independence.

The centre’s completion is part of a wider £600m plan to improve Scotland’s custodial estate. The Bella Centre will have a sister centre in Glasgow and work is progressing on a replacement for HMP YOI Cornton Vale, near Stirling.

Community safety minister Ash Regan said: “The Bella Centre marks a step change in the way Scotland supports women in custody, and is the first facility of its kind in the UK. It takes a gender-specific and trauma informed approach to better prepare women for re-integration back into their communities.

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