Is this world's poshest prison?

Rs 100-crore Norway jail has en-suite bathrooms and windows without bars

Rs 100-crore Norway jail has en-suite bathrooms and windows without bars

A luxury prison containing en-suite bathrooms, ufffd1 million (Rs 6.7 crore) Banksy-style art and windows without bars, has been built in Norway.

The ufffd15 (Rs 100 crore) million Halden Prison took 10 years to build and has been touted as the most humane in the world for its 252 inmates.

Women power: Half the prison guards are female as it is believed this decreases aggression

Reducing crime
Prison authorities claim the luxury environment of the 75-acre site helps reduce the country's already very low crime rate.u00a0

Each inmate gets a private cell with a mini-fridge, flat-screen TV and even a private en-suite bathroom and barless windowsu00a0- because they let in more sunlight.

Then for every 12 to 15 rooms there is a top-spec kitchen with stainless steel work tops and lounge areas complete with IKEA-style sofas and coffee tables.

To cap-off their stay at Halden the prisoners are also able to use a gym, complete with rock-climbing wall, a music studio, and a luxury library.u00a0

Like outside world
Architect Hans Henrik Hoilund said Holden was designed to ensure prisoners did not re-offend. "The most important thing is that the prison looks as much like the outside world as possible," he said.

"To avoid an institutional feel, exteriors are not concrete but made of bricks, galvanised steel and larch; the buildings seem to have grown organically from the woodlands.u00a0 And while there is one obvious symbol of incarceration -- a 20-foot concrete security wall along the prison's perimeter -- trees obscure it," he added.u00a0

u00a0In Norway, only one in five prisoners end up back in jail after release, compared to between 50 and 60 per cent in the UK.