Inmates gave a refurbished women’s jail unit their seal of approval yesterday.
The Scottish Prison Service has spent £15,000 on a revamp of part of Porterfield in Inverness.
The new accommodation was visited by Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing, who met the first female offenders to be held in the jail since 2008.
The previous women’s unit was closed in 2008 to try to ease overcrowding in the men’s wings.
The new one can accommodate up to six prisoners from the Highland and north-east areas, and allow them to be closer to their families rather than serving their sentences at Cornton Vale in Stirlingshire or at the women’s unit at Greenock Prison.
Ann Leslie, 54, of Aberdeen, was given a 13-month sentence at the city’s sheriff court in May for a string of offences, including breaching an antisocial behaviour order.
She said yesterday: “I’ve previously been held at Cornton Vale and Greenock, and they just don’t compare to this place. In Cornton Vale it is busy and noisy and you are just treated like a number.
“Here, the other lassies are nice and the staff are nice, I’ve got three big windows in my room and I can do my own cooking and that, and because I’m nearer home I get to see my family more.”
David Abernethy, governor of Inverness Prison, said the idea was to make the unit feel as unlike a prison as possible.
Mr Abernethy said: “The idea is to have female prisoners from the Highlands and islands and Aberdeen areas here, so they have more regular contact with their families before their release.
“This is a pilot scheme and we’ve tried to make it feel like bedrooms as opposed to cells, while the doors to their rooms are never locked.
“We believe this will undoubtedly have a better impact on prisoners reoffending.”
Mr Ewing, who is also MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, said: “The work done in the community integration unit is a perfect example of the kind of innovative approach that is needed to support women making the transition from prison life back into the community.
“This approach recognises the complex rehabilitation needs of prisoners and is setting the standard in helping women offenders who are coming towards the end of their sentences to get their lives back on track.”
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) wants to build a new jail to replace Porterfield, which is still overcrowded.
The SPS is looking for a site in the Highland capital to house a £40million jail capable of taking all categories of inmates, including women and young offenders.