Two Islanders have been named in the Queen’s New Year’s honours list.

Jeremy “Joe” Rook, 57, has been awarded an MBE (Member of the British Empire) for helping to stop prisoners re-offending when they are released from jail.

And Dr Darren Smart , 53,from Minster has received a BEM (Order of the British Empire) for services to public libraries.

Mr Rook, who is also a trustee of Sheppey Matters in Sheerness, is the head of business assurance at Elmley prison, Eastchurch, on the Isle of Sheppey. He spearheaded an innovative project between Canterbury College, which runs Sheppey College in Sheerness, and HMP Standford Hill open prison at Eastchurch to provide technical training on computer networking.

This included the creation of a new site outside the prison which offered courses to serving prisoners and to the local community. As a result, more than 200 prisoners gained IT qualifications and the college received an Adult Learner Award.

The collaboration was shortlisted for a Times Educational Supplement Award. He then persuaded the college to expand the project to include plumbing and electricians’ courses, funded through a ground-breaking loan scheme which he brokered. Through this, the college now offers up to Level 4 qualifications and awards 650 technical qualifications each year.

He created an Offender Training Programme in conjunction with a local training provider, focussing on prisoners at particular risk of re-offending on release. In its first year, the project enabled 43 men to be offered training that led to permanent full-time employment on release.

He was involved in setting up, and is a board member of, the Kent Rapid Rehousing Pathway Project, now called Preventing Rough Sleeping after Custody, facilitating joint working with local authorities and housing services across Kent.

This included the creation of Prison Navigator roles within Kent prisons, working directly with prisoners before their release.

Mr Rook said: “I joined the prison service in 1988, which seems a very long time ago. Reducing re-offending is absolutely key to the work that we do. I have been fortunate in having really good managers and a really good team who have helped me so much in what I’ve been trying to do. I feel very humbled to be given this award but it’s really a team effort."

His wife Lissa also works in the prison service and was "absolutely ecstatic" over the award,, he said.

Dr Smart is strategic manager (operations) of libraries, registrations and archives with Kent County Council in charge of 99 branches and has pioneered its digital offerings (regarded as its 100th 'branch') and techniques to measure how libraries improve health and wellbeing and tackle loneliness.

He said: "I have utterly no idea who put me up for this award but I am very honoured. It is really down to my fantastic team of staff and volunteers."

The former grammar school pupil was born in Dartford and studied at Manchester and Liverpool universities before joining the pharmaceutical industry as a researcher creating better painkillers. After a series of mergers and a stint in management with Tesco he joined Essex County Council's libraries team.

He admitted: "Like many people, I had a prejudiced vision of libraries. But they are not just about books. They are safe places where people can study, do their homework and somewhere for the lonely to meet others."

The chartered librarian spent a while in West Sussex before "returning home" to Kent.

He said: "The idea that e-books will kill physical books is a total red herring. I read e-books but I still buy books and also borrow books from the library for research. People swap between them. But the library also offers a digital service 24 hours a day, seven days a week serving people from cradle to grave. Everyone is welcome.

Dr Smart is married with two grown-up daughters.