In this edition...
Porticus update
We’re looking ahead to the end of first phase of the programme at the end of 2023 and are working with our MEL partners to scope out what the second phase of the programme might look like, ahead of working with our investment committee in the spring/summer of next year to help them make a decision. As part of that, we’re grateful to all of the work that partners are doing around developing stories of change as this will all help in making the case for the next phase of the programme.
Community Accommodation Service 3 resource shared with partners
Following the meeting in September, Clinks picked up conversations with HMPPS officials working on CAS3 about the need for resources that would help the voluntary sector working in prisons and through the gate to better understand provision. HMPPS have shared this resource which is a stakeholder pack they have developed for HMPPS regions. They have asked for input into what additional considerations would be needed for voluntary organisations so they can do something further on this in January. Please send any thoughts to christopher.stacey@clinks.org
Forward Trust launch the new prison apprenticeship pathway
Forward Trust have launched a new pilot project called the Prison Apprentice Pathway (or PAP) which is supported and funded by charitable trust Porticus UK. The project provides a unique pathway to apprenticeships for people who are currently in prison – a pathway that does not currently exist. It works by identifying people who are within three months of release and might be suitable for an apprenticeship when they get out. The pathway involves a series of short sessions which not only provide information about apprenticeships to participants (many may have never heard of them), but help dispel myths people might have about what apprenticeships involve or who can benefit from them. Read more about the pilot project here
Shannon Trust is to become a PPfP partner and develop the Turning Pages digital app
Funding from Porticus will help Shannon Trust develop the Turning Pages digital app to combat the issue of low-literacy. Shannon Trust is accelerating our network of learners, coaches and partner organisations using digital technology to ensure that nobody is left out of learning. Our independently evaluated reading programme "Turning Pages" teaches people how to read (with the support of trained peer mentors). The programme has been developed into a digital application, supported by funding from the ‘Prison Leaver Innovation Challenge’ awarded by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The digital app is now being piloted across Kent, Surry, Sussex Probation region, followed by an independent evaluation. The pilot will provide people on probation with a digital solution to learning to read, available on any device and offering a hybrid model of learning so that an individual may blend how they learn: with their coach and at times, on their own. Funding from Porticus will enable us to drive widespread community engagement with our literacy programme, well beyond our probation pilot. During 2023 we will test and build the app’s functionality, adding partner agency on-boarding and coach training features, allowing us to engage with other ‘early digital adopter’ partner agencies, with the ultimate aim of building a network of learners, coaches and community partners across the UK. Find out more about Turning Pages Digital. For more information, contact Ian Merrill, CEO ian.merrill@shannontrust.org.uk and Amanda Segelov, Director of Community Delivery amanda.segelov@shannontrust.org.uk
Spark Inside service delivery ramps up again
We’ve just had our busiest period of delivery since before the pandemic, with our prison delivery returning to pre-COVID levels. We started our first ever Hero’s Journey programme at HMP Brixton, which is very exciting, and last month we had our first programme in YMPYOI Cookham Wood since pre-lockdown. In November we’ve run a second pilot of our Black Hero’s Journey programme at HMPYOI Isis, which has been going brilliantly. This latest cohort have all been Equalities Reps, who have been really engaged and whose feedback will make the programme even stronger. We hope the Equalities Reps will help publicise future Black Hero’s Journey courses.
Pact Shadow Advisory Board continues to develop
Residents of HMP Brixton and HMP/YOI Isis are actively engaged within both regimes, improving access to support activities and contributing to the wider strategic development of R2C. Their constructive contribution is very much welcomed. Housing/accommodation post release is one of the issues the board are looking at. Two members spoke at the Pact "Time Well Spent" Conference last month. Manchester Metropolitan University have been commissioned to undertake an evaluation of Routes2Change. In October we appointed a dedicated role to work with children and young people affected by imprisonment the role will involve liaising with schools to help develop best practice responses to familial imprisonment. Read about our conference
Prison Reform Trust and the experiences of prisoners serving long sentences
PRT’s Building Futures team would like at some point in future to share preliminary findings of our consultation on the experiences of prisoners serving very long sentences maintaining personal relationships with people outside. We were keen to understand how contact with significant people in the prisoners’ life changed over the course of a sentence, and whether the prison environment helps or hinders these relationships.
Criminal Justice Alliance update on their advocacy work around resettlement
We are continuing our policy and advocacy work on resettlement with a range of stakeholders in order to create opportunities for PPfP partners and CJA members to shape ongoing work. We are in discussion with MoJ policy leads working on Employment Advisory Boards (EABs), the 2030 vision for resettlement, and the resettlement aspects of the Future Regime Design; businesses such as Timpsons and IKEA; and academics drawing together good practice on technology in prisons across Europe. Please get in touch with Hannah Pittaway hannah.pittaway@criminaljusticealliance.org.uk to find out more and get involved and click here to read more
Criminal Justice Alliance provide an update on consultation responses
We were pleased to see part 1 of the Children’s Commissioner’s Family Review acknowledge the particular vulnerabilities of children experiencing parental imprisonment and commit to further research and policy work in this area, following our evidence that the Commissioner’s remit should explicitly include protecting the rights of children with a parent in prison. The CJA is working with PPfP partner Centre for Social Justice on how we can continue promoting recommendations in this area. We have also recently responded to the National Audit Office’s survey on improving resettlement outcomes for people leaving prison, based on our ‘Purpose and Connection’ briefing which was co-produced with PPfP partners.
Irish Penal Reform Trust is to become a PPfP partner and have recruited a project coordinator
PRT have received funding from Porticus for the Children and Families Initiative. Following a competitive recruitment process, on 21 November, Ashling Tobin joined IPRT as Project Coordinator for this work. This will be a three-year fulltime post to work directly on issues relating to children and families impacted by imprisonment and will focus on implementing the recommendations in our 2021 report - Piecing It Together: Supporting Children and Families with a Family Member in Prison in Ireland. Ashling has over 20 years of experience working as a professional in the area of high-risk young people and their families most recently as a Youth Justice Co-Ordinator with Foróige. She has also recently completed an LLM/MA in Human Rights in Criminal Justice with the University of Limerick. You can contact her on atobin@iprt.ie
Clinks secures funding to establish a programme and network for organisations supporting the families of people in prison
The voluntary sector is critical to delivering most criminal justice-based family support. The majority of visits and family contact services provided to people in prison are arranged by voluntary organisations. These organisations are specialist, tend to be small, and often lead the way in the development of innovative practices. Building on the implementation of Lord Farmer’s recommendations, learning from the commissioning in 2017 and 2022, the challenges in delivering future services, developing effective ways of measuring impact and bringing together others that are delivering charitably-funded projects – these are all areas of work that will be prioritised through this network to improve the outcomes for families.
Clinks secures funding to deliver the Good Prison voluntary sector coordinator model at HMP Isis
This isn’t public knowledge at the moment, so please keep to yourselves for now, but we’re delighted to have secured 3 years of funding from City Bridge Trust to deliver Clinks’ Good Prison voluntary sector coordinator model in HMP Isis. There’ll be more details in early 2023 but given a number of PPfP partners are working in and around the prison, we wanted you to be one of the firsts to know. Read here about why voluntary sector coordination is essential.
Criminal Justice Alliance receive additional funding for ELIVATE CJS
CJA are delighted to have received additional funding from Porticus UK towards our lived experience leadership programme, ELEVATE CJS. This funding will support leaders on the programme to undertake senior-level work placements and to develop tools and resources for employers and senior leadership teams to promote lived experience leadership.
RIFT Social Enterprise have commenced a small pilot at HMP Stafford
The funding, thanks to a ring-fenced grant from Porticus, is being used to evaluate the specific barriers that people convicted of a sexual offence and who are ahead over 50 face when considering self-employment on release from prison. We will support 10 men over the next 12 months and our provision includes both pre-and post-release self-employment support from a RIFT Business Start-Up Advisor. Their Probation Officers have explicitly agreed to the business ideas that we will be supporting them with. We have collaborated with HMPPS (Yorkshire and Humberside) to design a questionnaire to help evaluate the impact of our work which we hope will provide some useful results for us to factor into future self-employment provision.
Restorative Engagement Forum guest blog
Relationship skills based on restorative practice principles - This guest blog from Charlotte Calkin, Director of Restorative Engagement Forum, and Dr Lucy Willmott, from Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge, summarises an evaluation of a relationship skills training model based on restorative practice principles that has been piloted at HMP Warren Hill. Read the blog here.
The Clink Charity is helping more people in prisons than ever before
The Clink Kitchens scheme is now live in over 30 prisons across England and Wales. These numbers are only set to increase, with the scheme due to expand to even more prisons in the New Year. The Clink was also heavily involved in New Futures Network’s Unlocking Hospitality events; Clink Kitchens teams across the country hosted bake-off events to promote our work and expand our network of supportive local employers. As well as training in food preparation and P=production, Clink Kitchens graduates receive personal and employability support from our growing team of support workers, and we are seeing excellent results; 72% of Clink graduates have entered into employment this year to date.
Pact have entered into a new relationship with NHS England/Improvement in London
Pact will work with prisons & prison healthcare providers to develop new ways of working which will enable families of prisoners to have a voice and contribute to the health, mental health, well-being & safety of family and significant other. This is through the through the Patient & Public Voice programme. Amy Pollard has been appointed to lead the work as Head of Family & Carer Services, a new role. Amy’s background is in mental health advocacy. She also worked on the Grenfell enquiry to support families. To connect, please email Amy.pollard@prisonadvice.org.uk
St Giles is investing £1m in our Peer Employment Pathway in prisons
This project will provide professional peer support to people in prison to help them access services and prepare for release. The Peer Employment Pathway will provide prisoners with training, an accredited qualification and employment and volunteering opportunities on release through St Giles, its partners and other employers. The project is anchored in St Giles’s tried and tested Peer Advisor Programme, first established in HMP Wandsworth 20 years ago to train prisoners as Peer Advisors providing support to other prisoners. Thousands of people have trained through the Programme since 2002. It now forms the backbone of St Giles’s custodial and community-based services and has been key in embedding lived experience in service delivery.
FrameWorks publish "Bridges from prison: making the case for jobs and relationships"
FrameWorks' latest report, supported by Porticus, is now available online. It explores how the public tend to think about people in and leaving prison, and how to make the case for the importance of job opportunities and supportive relationships – to build understanding about why they are needed and to build support for action. Find the report here
FrameWorks UK have launched a toolkit
The toolkit builds on the communications principles set out in our research briefing Bridges from Prison: making the case for jobs and relationships. You’ll find practical tips and tools for anyone communicating about people in and leaving prison. The principles in the toolkit can be applied to any form of communications, from reports to social media, speeches to funding applications. If you have any questions or would like to discuss how we can support you in applying this to your work, please get in touch with Sophie at sgordon@frameworksuk.org or view the toolkit here
FrameWorks UK share their webinar on "Bridges from prison"
It was great to see so many of you at our Zoom briefing for partners a few weeks ago. We've also now recorded a short webinar that summarises the communications principles from 'Bridges from prison: making the case for jobs and relationships'. Please do share the link with any colleagues who may find it useful.
Pact will be launching a new report in January into the experiences of prisoners’ families of prison healthcare
This will be shared at a Chatham House rules roundtable event will be held with leaders from health & justice on 18 January in collaboration with the Kings Fund, chaired by Juliet Lyon & Kings Fund’s CEO, and Lord Farmer & Dr Samantha Callan are attending. The meeting will be attended by prisoners’ family members who contributed to the study. The new report will be launched in the third week of January.
The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) is launching a call for evidence
This evidence seeks to explore the role that sport can play in diverting vulnerable young people away from crime and antisocial behaviour. Responses will help inform our research and policy development regarding what needs to change to ensure that sport and physical activity are used to their fullest potential to support at-risk youth at the earliest possible opportunity. Our call for evidence is available here and will run through to mid-January 2023. Click here to find out more. Please don’t hesitate to contact the project lead at sabrina.hummel@centreforsocialjustice.org.uk Deadline 15 January 2023
Pact are recruiting to a new strategic post
This post will strengthen user voice and co-production. Applicants should have lived experience of having been in custody, or have experience of a close family member or ‘significant other’ in custody. The role will support and develop best practice across Pact’s services and also develop Pact’s work to support people with lived experience to grow understanding in the public arena and inform policy & practice. Click here to see the vacancy
Criminal Justice Alliance is hiring a Policy Manager
This role will lead policy, public affairs and research work. The Policy Manager will work closely with PPfP partners and member organisations to draw on their expertise to inform CJA policy work and recommendations to achieve systemic change. They will work across a range of criminal justice policy areas, including our PPfP work on improving resettlement outcomes for people in and leaving prison, as well as promoting lived experience leadership. Applications close 4 December. Please share this opportunity with your networks
Dates for partners meetings in 2023
Looking ahead to next year, please pencil in these dates into your diary for the PPfP partner meetings – with the usual time of 11-1 with lunch until 2pm. 1 March / 7 June / 6 September / 6 December
The next e-bulletin
The feedback we received from partners was that this e-bulletin would best work quarterly. As such, the next edition will be sent on 1 March 2023.
The deadline for sending in updates for the March edition is 24 February. Complete the form here
If you have any questions about this e-bulletin, please contact christopher.stacey@clinks.org