The Jockey Club Inmates' Education Subsidy Scheme" (JCIESS), an initiative to help needy prison inmates pursue education and acquire qualifications as part of preparations for their reintegration into society, has benefited more than 500 inmates since its introduction in 2004.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust donated HK$1.1 million to the Correctional Services Department in 2004 to set up a four-year scheme, entitled "Jockey Club Inmates' Education Subsidy Scheme" (JCIESS), which aims to provide subsidies to prisoners to pursue distance-learning courses run by tertiary institutions or sit for public examinations. Special provisions have also been made for young inmates at Training Centres to attend Outward Bound courses designed to build their characters.

A certificate presentation ceremony for the latest group of student inmates was held today at Cape Collinson Correctional Institution, one of the penal institutions that benefit from the scheme.

The JCIESS Committee has put in place stringent criteria aimed to select the most appropriate beneficiaries according to their abilities, aspirations and learning attitude.