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The Ministry of Justice’s Circular Economy Strategy sets out how it will reduce waste, cut costs, and create green jobs across its estate of more than 1,500 sites, including over 100 prisons. The strategy aligns with the Environment Act target to halve residual waste per person by 2042 and the Climate Change Act goal of net zero by 2050.
It identifies ten objectives under three priorities: waste governance, smart waste management, and building an internal circular economy. These include rethinking procurement, improving recycling and reuse, managing food waste, investing in repair and remanufacturing workshops, and embedding circular principles into construction.
The long-term vision is to ensure only durable, repairable products are procured, with repair and recycling integrated into prison workshops, and that disposal follows the waste hierarchy. Prisoners and leavers will gain skills and qualifications to secure jobs in the waste and sustainability sector, supporting rehabilitation and the wider green economy.
Best practice examples include TV and boot repair schemes saving millions, prison waste management units salvaging 4,000 tonnes of material annually, and training programmes that have already delivered nearly 1,800 waste management qualifications. Community projects, such as the Great British Spring Clean, further demonstrate the strategy’s social value.
Overall, the MoJ aims to embed circular economy principles across operations, turning prisons into hubs for repair, reuse and recycling while reducing environmental impact and creating pathways into green employment.
