The Key Café, a ground-breaking charity organisation, is opening on Gloucester Road with the mission of reducing reoffending rates by providing work experience to individuals transitioning from prisons.
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00:00So, we're going to be opening up the Key Cafe, hopefully in spring 2025.
00:05We've had brilliant support from the local community and also local employers.
00:10And the idea behind it is to create paid transitional employment placements for people leaving prison.
00:16One of the things that we know are the two most significant factors to reduce re-offending
00:21is the provision of stable accommodation and also suitable employment.
00:25And for many people leaving prison, they often feel like they lack self-confidence
00:29and the training and the skills that employers need.
00:32And this idea around transition is what makes this so important,
00:36the idea around transitioning from prison into the community.
00:40The Key Cafe will be a groundbreaking charity organisation
00:44with a mission of reducing re-offending rates by providing work experience to individuals transitioning from prison.
00:52What are the barriers then for people coming out and being rehabilitated and getting jobs?
01:00So, we would hear a couple of reoccurring themes.
01:03And some of those themes were really around the stigma,
01:06around the fear that employers won't want to look at them because of their criminal convictions
01:11and often a real lack of confidence and self-belief.
01:14So, we definitely use what we call a strength-based approach.
01:17We look at what people can do.
01:19We strongly believe in second chances.
01:21It's often by the grace of God, for many of us, that we actually have not ended up in prison.
01:26You know, we often have, you know, these are people that have often had limited, like, life opportunities and life chances,
01:32but they have potential.
01:34And it's about recognising their strengths, recognising their potential
01:37and enabling them to become participating and contributing members of society.
01:42But what does the Restore Trust aim to do for the people on their scheme?
01:47Filling in the gaps in their CV, gaining the skills and the qualifications that employers want,
01:53but also knowing that they can come to my staff at the Restore Trust to have a bit of support if they're having a bad day.