FM World 22 September 2011
The Clink Charity, a commercial restaurant operating inside a British prison, has launched an ex-offender career-mentoring scheme.
The Clink operates what it claims is the first “public access restaurant” in the prison regime, in Her Majesty’s Prison High Down, Surrey.
“Its logic is rooted in the power of rehabilitation to remedy the degenerative effect of prison sentences on those convicted,” according to The Clink.
Prisoners who have qualified as chefs and waiters, complete with practical kitchen and restaurant experience at The Clink, will receive professional support and guidance after leaving prison and start looking for work.
The mentoring scheme is being done in conjunction with Springboard, an educational charity.
Mentoring will include three or four visits by an assigned mentor during the prisoner’s last month in prison and include an interview with the prisoner’s prospective employer, if they have one.
The mentor will accompany the graduate to their accommodation, if required, and also take the graduate to work on his first day and arrange a travel card as required.
Also, the mentor will meet the graduate each week in their work place for three to six months.
Chris Moore, chief executive of The Clink Charity, said The Clink “has successfully trained 84 prisoners to date and this graduate mentoring scheme, launched in partnership with Springboard, will implement crucial employment mentoring in the months before and after a prisoner’s release”.
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