Finding Potential: support people with convictions back to work

People professionals empowering people with experience of the criminal justice system to re-enter the workplace, and thrive.

Finding Potential

Are you an experienced HR professional who can use your unique understanding of recruitment and employee experience to help someone with a conviction to navigate the world of work? We’re looking for people professionals to mentor individuals and help them to flourish in work through our Finding Potential programme. You could be supporting someone to take their first steps into employment following a conviction. Or you could support empower someone who is working to navigate the challenges of a typical workplace. You’ll be helping your mentee to rediscover their confidence and re-establish or develop their skills. Your professional expertise could help those who have been out of the workplace for sometime take their next step, for the best chance of success in their roles.

How Finding Potential works

Mentoring takes place online over 6-9 months. Topics that you might offer support on include:

Support will all aspects of the job search including CV writing, application forms and interviews
Navigating a recruitment process with an unspent conviction
Instilling confidence
Assisting with queries on contracts and policies
Advice on developing skills, progressing in a role and wider career aspirations.

Mentoring relationships are run in cohorts. While you are mentoring you will have the opportunity to meet and share best practice with other mentors on your cohort.

Interested in becoming a Finding Potential mentor?

I hadn’t had contact with people with convictions before. It was a privilege to learn more about them as individuals and the challenges they face in the world of work."
Helen, CIPD Trust mentor

Finding Potential workplace mentor role profile

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Finding Potential job search mentor role profile

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Why support people with convictions into work

Reoffending costs the UK approximately £18.1 billion a year.
The prison system also has a poor record in reducing reoffending, with 49% of adults reoffending within 12-months.
86% of employers who have recruited people with convictions report they are good at their job.
92% of employers say diverse recruitment has enhanced their reputation, helping them win new business.

Our partnerships

We have teamed up with St Giles Trust and Offploy on this programme, both experts in supporting people with convictions to get their lives back on track.

Employers often come to us asking how to hire people with convictions but don’t know where to start. Running this project with CIPD will give more HR managers the confidence to safely hire people with lived experience but also give many of our candidates the vital new chance that they need.
Rik Willis, Service Manager at Offploy

GUIDE

Recruiting, employing and retaining people with convictions

This guide provides practical advice and recommendations for organisations of all sizes on how to effectively recruit, employ and retain individuals with experience in the criminal justice system.

Download the guide