Damian Hinds MP, Minister of State in the Department of Education, has visited Wealstun Prison in Wetherby, Yorkshire to meet SBFM and learn more about its Evolve programme.
During his visit, Hinds spoke with several prisoners in Wealstun Prison and joined an Evolve workshop attended by offenders. There, he learned how Evolve works with prisons like Wealstun and rehabilitation charities including the Timpson Foundation and Shaw Trust to identify and recruit talent, and who work to change the difficult path that ex-offenders face when leaving prison by making supported employment opportunities available.
The government has recently lifted the disclosure barrier for many ex-offenders further supporting reintegration into society and securing paid employment, when many face additional barriers.
SBFM works with clients including PureGym and DPD to offer cleaning operatives progression pathways that can lead to direct employment into clients’ organisations, giving them the opportunity to upskill and have greater earning potential.
Evolve works with a range of disadvantaged groups including ex-offenders, care leavers, veterans, people with disabilities or long-term unemployed. In July 2023, SBFM was also invited onto the government’s Employment Advisory Board (EAB), as part of a programme that connects prison leavers with local employers. SBFM owner and founder Colin Shute is chairman of the board, and SBFM people and culture director Kelly Dolphin is a board member.
Regarding the visit, Colin Shute said: “We are delighted Damian joined our team at Wealstun as he was keen to learn more about the work Evolve does. Hinds was incredibly impressed with our Evolve scheme to support ex-offenders facing barriers to employment.
“More needs to be done to break the stigma surrounding ex-offenders. Everybody deserves the chance to create a new life for themselves, the opportunity to secure work and upskill themselves. Ex-offenders need support and there should be more schemes in place to provide this – we’re proud to be leading the way in our industry.
“We hope that having a member of the Government understand the work we do will help raise the profile of supporting ex-offenders and inspire and encourage more companies to develop their own career programmes for disadvantaged groups.”
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