Shannon Trust is a charity devoted to the development of literacy in the UK prison system. We worked with the Trust to create two films to promote the work they do, and the opportunities they provide.

Toe By Toe is a peer mentoring scheme which enables prisoners with reading skills to teach other prisoners who cannot read well, or who cannot read at all – of which there are over 50,000 at any one time.

Before filming, we spent time meeting with Shannon Trust volunteers and prisoners at HMP Garth, to really get to grips with how the scheme works, and to hear first hand about how it can change peoples lives.

It was clear from the outset, that the prisoners themselves should have the opportunity to tell their own stories – not only would that make the films more accessible to other prisoners, but it would allow us to explore all aspects of the scheme, how it fits into prison life, and what benefits it brings to those who are involved.

We spent a day filming inside HMP Garth, a category B prison, interviewing a number of prisoners, volunteers and prison staff. We then edited a 4 minute film which is intended to be made available at all the prisons which run the scheme. We also produced this 11-minute film, which explains in more detail how the scheme works, the benefits it provides, and how it has impacted upon peoples lives.

"…the single best thing introduced into prisons in the last ten years"
Stephen Shaw, Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

"I am pleased to be able to support the Shannon Trust’s work, and it was a very positive experience to go and see the Toe by Toe scheme in action and meet some of the mentors and mentees. Learning to read represents a significant turning point in anyone’s life, and may be the one thing that makes a difference to help people in prison turn their lives around"
JK Rowling

"The beauty of the Toe by Toe scheme is its economy and simplicity. Instead of taking place on the Education Wing, it is designed to work on the prisoner’s own wing. It requires no external teaching staff, just Keda Cowling’s little book"
Daily Telegraph