New scheme helps prison leavers into employment

According to the charity Only a Pavement Away – which connects people facing homelessness, prison leavers and veterans to stable employment – out of 70,000 prison leavers released each year, just 15% are in P45 employment one month after release. One of the main reasons for this being that 50% of employers reject anyone with a criminal record.

One scheme hoping to aid social mobility has already placed 100 prison leavers into employment. The ‘Releasing Potential’ scheme was first launched by Greene King in 2019 and is designed to give prison leavers a chance to start over with a sustainable career in hospitality.

Potential applicants are selected from both recent prison leavers and those still carrying out their sentence, and specialist training and support is given until they are released. If a successful work trial and job interview is completed, the applicant is immediately offered a relevant role at Greene King.

Ros spoke to Graham Briggs, head of employability and apprenticeships at Greene King.

Photo by Glenn Carstens Peter on Unsplash