Prisoners will be put to work refurbishing earthquake-damaged houses in Christchurch.
Minister of Corrections Anne Tolley announced on Thursday that inmates from Rolleston Prison and people on community sentences will work on the houses.
They will refurbish 150 Housing New Zealand properties during the next five years.
Ms Tolley says the programme allows offenders to contribute to the rebuild while gaining valuable skills and employment training.
She says Rolleston Prison is spending about $4 million on a construction yard for the project and each house will cost about $100,000 to fix.
The first refurbished house will be completed by the end of the year.
