The workshop, which has been kitted out by Xerox and Morgana, has been set up to help train prisoners, thereby increasing their employment prospects on release.

Among the equipment installed at the Category D prison is a Xerox DocuColor 5252 and a Nuvera 100 digital copier/printer.

Xerox staff with NVQ-accredited qualifications will train prison supervisors on the colour and monochrome machines, and the manufacturer has also pledged to help find employment for prisoners, who pass the qualification, on their release.

Initially the workshop will produce professional work for the Prison Service as well as taking on personalised jobs for inmates.

However, it is hoped that within six months it will start to take on commercial work from Kent businesses and eventually generate turnover of around 300,000 per annum.

"The premise of the centre is to reduce re-offending," explained Stanford Hill Prison governor John Wilson. "We want to offer an offender the opportunity to have modern skills to enable employment on release."

Xerox UK general sales manager Andrew Cooper said that the firm was "very pleased to be included in this NVQ initiative".

Alongside the Xerox kit is 60,000 worth of finishing equipment from Morgana. The line-up includes a Documaster, Docufold and Rhin-o-tuff punching and binding equipment.

"Stanford Hill prison has a wide range of machines and, effectively, it has everything we make or sell," said Morgana sales manager Andrew Webster.

Webster added that a further order for an Autocreaser 50 has recently been placed by Maidstone Prison.

Around 220 prisoners work in print workshops throughout the UK's network of prisons, producing 2m worth of print work.