Education provider to deliver Ministry of Justice’s new Prisoner Education Service across eight public prisons from September

Novus, one of the UK’s leading jailhouse education providers, has been awarded a contract to deliver the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) new Prisoner Education Service (PES) across the West Midlands.

News of this contract win cements its standing as the largest provider of its kind in the country.

The contract, awarded following a competitive procurement process, will see Novus, part of the LTE Group, begin delivery in September. 

The agreement covers eight public prisons across the region, where the organisation has been operating since 2019 under the previous Prison Education Framework.

The move to the PES model follows a successful rollout in other regions in October 2025, including Greater Manchester and Yorkshire. 

The latest award brings Novus’s total operations to 50 locations across the public and private estate in England and Wales.

Bridging the gap between prison and employment

The central aim of the PES is to reduce the distance between incarceration and the workplace. 

Through high-quality vocational training and core education, the programme seeks to equip learners, many of whom have been removed from the labour market, with the skills needed to find stable work upon release.

Peter Cox, managing director of Novus, said: “We are proud of our track record in supporting individuals into employment after release.

“We look forward to working closely with His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service to help more people in the West Midlands turn their lives around.”

The contract will ensure continuity for existing educational programmes while introducing updated PES standards aimed at cutting reoffending rates through targeted, professional-grade training.