Last Friday I was involved in a prisoner re-settlement event at Guys Marsh Prison a Category-C adult male training and resettlement prison located in Shaftesbury, Dorset. This is the lowest category of a secure prison and acts as a stepping stone for selected risk-assessed prisoners to progress into an open prison.
I was invited to attend the event as a member of HMP Guys Marsh’s Employment Advisory Board (EAB). EABs were introduced as a joint initiative between New Futures Network and the Timpson Foundation, to act as a platform to connect employers and business leaders with prisons. New Futures Network are a specialist part of HM Prison and Probation Service that partners businesses and prisons to fill skills gap and support prison leavers into employment, and the Timpson Foundation rehabilitates prison leavers by offering supported employment.
The Resettlement Event targeted prisoners who were due to be released within the next 6 months. They were invited to meet local employers, discuss employment opportunities and even take part in interviews.
I was impressed with the attitude and approach of the people I met and by the end of the day, I was left feeling positive and felt a sense of purpose to support those in difficult situations, by helping them get a second chance.
Could you help, and offer a job role?
From discussions with the prisoners who attended, the most popular areas of interest were:
- Construction jobs
- Manual labour
- Landscape gardening
- Factory work
- HGV drivers
- Hospitality
- Agriculture
Participant Feedback Comments
“Being able to see numerous employers at the same time and they were helpful”
“People trying to give you a second chance”
“It gives me confidence that I can get a job on release”
“Excellent”
“I found it enjoyable to mingle with other people while sorting things out for my release”
“Helped me get a few things sorted for my release”
“Given me options, direction and hopefully a job”
“It was inspiring”
“Help me achieve my goals in life”
“It just helped to get things finalised”
“Just put things in place that I didn’t think I could do until after release”
Want to get involved?
If you would like to find out more information, please get in contact and I will pass your details onto the Regional Employment Broker at Guys Marsh. You can also register your interest by visiting Register - New Futures Network.