“Prison has no rehabilitation – you get a bus ticket home”

Ex-prisoners are being given a ‘second chance’ thanks to an employment scheme.

Key4Life was set up in Bristol to help ex-offenders get back into the world of work and has since supported over 1,000 men across the country.

The charity works with people while they are still in prison and once they have been released.

Danny, 26, came forward in November and said: “I want to change it for my kids, just to give my kids a chance in life and make my family proud of me.”

The charity’s CEO and founder Eva Hamilton MBE said getting the work started “is absolutely essential”.

“If these young people leave prison and they don’t have legal money coming their way or they don’t have a positive purpose in their lives, they’re going to go back to their old ways very quickly.”

Danny first went to prison when he was 16 and was recently jailed for drug offences.

He said without the help of a Key4Life mentor, his life would likely continue like this.

“There is no rehabilitation in prison. When you leave you are left with a £76 grant and a bus ticket to go home.”

A spokesman for HM Prison and Probation Service said: “Prison and probation staff are working closely to prepare prisoners for release.

“This includes creating detailed pre-launch plans to address resettlement needs such as accommodation, employment and funding.

“Everyone who has left prison will meet with their probation officer within 24 hours of release, receive travel expenses and eligible prisoners can receive additional support with a one-off payment to meet their immediate needs.”

“I definitely feel a lot more positive now, I have a lot more support in my corner,” Danny said.

“They (Key4Life) make you feel like you’re somebody.”

At a recent event in Bristol, ex-offenders were invited to be interviewed by potential employers, who then provided feedback.

“It’s really important for our business to get involved with Key4Life to give these boys the opportunity to go into business,” said Zoe Joyner of catering equipment company Nisbets in Avonmouth.

“Everyone deserves a second chance,” she added.

Ms Hamilton explained that the reoffending rate for men coming out of a short-term sentence in the UK is around 64 per cent, but for those going through Key4Life in 2023, it was just 7 per cent.

“I think it’s amazing,” said Robert, 21, who lives in Bristol but is originally from Slovakia.

He recently served time for robbery.

“It’s not a good lifestyle,” he said.

“I won’t make the same mistakes. I have five sisters, I don’t want my sisters to always see their older brother in prison,” added Robert.

He’s also a boxer and said he focuses on that and “keeping me healthy.”

“I think it’s amazing,” he said of Key4Life mentors who have “changed his life” and are helping people like him.

Liam Meredith got a full-time job at Yeo Valley after coming to one of the Key4Life employment sessions.

He now has his own burger and ice cream van and works as a mentor for the charity.

“It was almost like I was always going to prison, with my grandfather in prison, with my mother in prison.”

“But here I am years later, clean, focused, paying it forward and positive and loving my life, man,” Mr Meredith said.

He added: “Sometimes all you need is someone to believe in you again and a lot of the guys haven’t had that in a long time.”