We recently spoke to Probation Practitioner Ellie Carr who took part in the West Midlands Always Hope pilot. This programme helps professionals to offer more effective support to young adults with care experience while in custody and after release.

“I’m a probation officer at the Nuneaton office, which is part of the Warwickshire Probation Delivery Unit (PDU). Last year, I worked with a young man with care experience called Tom*.

Prior to meeting Tom, Ellie was contacted by Leah*, a Lifelong Links Co-Ordinator. This was her first introduction to the Always Hope approach.

“That was really helpful because I knew nothing about Tom. He was put on my books just before he was released.”

Leah organised a video call to discuss the Always Hope pilot with all the different agencies working with Tom. They held a joint meeting with Tom too, so he could better understand how the different professionals would support him.

“She bridged a gap that would have taken me three to four months to build. It stopped duplication of work. It stopped confusion because we all knew what we were doing to support Tom.”

It can be very daunting for a young adult who’s just been released to make these connections themselves.

“When young adults first come out of the criminal justice system, they might struggle to connect with different agencies. They’ve got so much going on.

“Leah did all that work, but she also pulled in other agencies. She found positive adults that Tom had met in the past who could come into his life and be his role models. Working with Tom’s personal advisor (PA), we were able to vet these individuals and arrange meetings in safe environments.”

Leah’s plan was to create a sustainable network of support that would facilitate his rehabilitation in the long term – once statutory support falls away.

“All the work we’d done across probation, leaving care and lifelong links, would be carried on by a network of appropriate adults.”

The Always Hope approach made it easier to connect Tom with his PA, which can be quite a lengthy process.

“That was hugely helpful because we often have to send off lots of emails to find someone’s PA. If the young adult hasn’t made themselves known to leaving care services, they then have to be referred, which can take months.

“Whereas in this case, Leah already knew exactly who the PA was, and she had made that referral for Tom while he was in custody. He met his PA within a week of being released, so he just needed to focus on managing his appointments.”

At the outset of working together, Tom agreed that Leah could share his case history with Ellie. This meant that Ellie didn’t have to ask Tom to recount any aspects of his life that he didn’t wish to discuss.

“I told him, ‘I’ve already got your information. Is there anything you want to talk about today or should we unpack x or y?’ Without that information, I might have been asking questions about his mum, dad, or childhood, which could have damaged our rapport.”

Taking part in the Always Hope pilot has helped Ellie better understand the distinct needs of young adults and why tailored support is so crucial.

“Probation teams only learn about new agencies when we build our networks. Having Always Hope, which was a completely different network than any we’ve used before, opened our eyes to what should be happening for 18-25-year-olds.

“We have support available, but it’s probably better suited to 30-40-year-olds. We have different services for women, so we should have different services for 18–25-year-olds.”

Over her time working with Tom, Ellie was delighted to see him make such positive progress.

“He had stable housing. There had been no drug use. His relationship with his girlfriend seemed very healthy. He became less reliant on professionals, which is a key part of a successful resettlement.

“While working together, Tom came to realise that he wasn’t ready to work. He went to the GP, got himself signed off, and then he did some training instead.

“I thought that was very impressive that he recognised that he wasn’t ready to hold down a job. He did seem to mature quite quickly, and he was able to do a lot of reflective work.”

Ellie believes that the efficiency of the Always Hope approach in building support around Tom played a key role in his progression.

“I spent a lot more time working with him on his sentence plan objectives rather than trying to secure accommodation or benefits for him.

“There was no messing around chasing referrals because we were such a well-oiled machine. That allowed us all to focus on his actual needs and risks. Towards the end, Tom’s trajectory was really good. I felt he was ready to come off probation.”

Tom’s progress was halted when his accommodation was ‘cuckooed’, and he began to engage in drug-related criminal activities. However, when approached by the police, he told them what had happened.

“A dangerous individual manipulated him and took advantage. But when the police spoke to him, he admitted everything.

“That might be because he had all these support networks in place, and he’d had such a positive experience with all these agencies. He knew he’d put himself at risk by telling the police what happened, but he trusted that they would protect him. I think that shows huge growth.”

Unfortunately, Tom was subsequently given a two-year sentence for engaging in drug-related activities. Ellie acknowledged that successful rehabilitation isn’t always linear and was pleased that he’d shown great maturity by speaking to the police and explaining what had happened, despite knowing the possible outcome.

“It wasn’t the best outcome in the end, but I believe that Tom will benefit from all the fantastic work he did down the line.

“When he’s released, I hope that will be the start of a positive future for him in the long term.”

*We have used pseudonyms in this interview to protect everyone’s identity

Building Trusting Relationships – The Key to Young Adult Resettlement

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We recently spoke to Abbie Gregory, Senior Switchback Mentor, about her work supporting young men during resettlement. The charity supports young men to find a way out of the justice system and build stable, rewarding lives.

Abbie studied social sciences with a focus on criminal science and child psychology. This led her into a career in youth offending work before she joined the Switchback team in January 2022.

“As a senior mentor, my job is to work 1-to-1 with our trainees who are 18–30-year-old men in prison. Switchback works in London based prisons, and I work in Brixton, Isis and Pentonville.

“I start working with the trainees three months before release. If someone needs support with housing, addiction, employment, family or relationships, we can support in one or all those areas. The programme is really individual to the person.”

Young men can self refer themselves or be referred via the probation service. More often, mentors contact eligible young men in prison to discuss the programme and whether it might be a good fit for them.

Switchback is keen for the service to feel distinct from probation, so there are no compulsory meetings or conditions.

“The support we offer is really self-motivated. We’d never say, ‘You have to come here.’ We always want to be led by the individual.”

For Abbie, what’s key to the success of Switchback’s approach is its focus on relationships. Many of the young men the charity work with are skeptical of professionals, so it’s vital to take time to build trust.

“I build a relationship pre-release, and I’ll continue to be their mentor through the gate. I think that continuity is important.

“We’re working with guys who have rarely had a constant support system. We allow them the space to build a relationship with us, and we let them know that we’re here solely to support them.”

Small caseloads means that intensive, one-to-one support can be offered. Mentors can take a hands-on approach and really invest in each of their trainees.

“I only support five guys at any one time whereas the probation service might have 40 or 50 people on their caseload.”

“Everything we discuss gets put into action post-release. We support with practical things like getting an ID, getting a bank account sorted, navigating the immense challenges of housing, or managing worries around reoffending.

“Quite intensive support can be made available to them as and when needed. If they need a mental health sick note, I can go to the GP and help them with that. It’s really important that we have the capacity to be there for trainees, especially for urgent issues that arise. It really builds trust because they know I’ll show up when they need me.”

Switchback support trainees for 12 weeks post release, but longer-term support is still available if required. Switchback doesn’t set rigid targets around entering employment or education because the charity believes that success looks different for each trainee. Furthermore, they recognise that every young adult progresses at a different rate.

“Our outcomes aren’t about how many people we can get into jobs. It’s more about the distance they’ve come. Let’s say someone said to me, ‘I want sustainable long-term housing, and I want to see my child once a week.’ If we achieve that by the end of 12 weeks, that’s a success.

“I’m of the opinion that we could get many of our trainees into jobs, but if they’re not in a place to hold it down, that’s not going to work. So, we work with each individual to find out their goals and what they want to achieve.”

Abbie has been working with James* since last summer. On release, he chose to focus on his professional development.

“James has engaged in all the opportunities we could offer him since his release. He did film and tv training, as this was a route he wanted to explore on release. He’s now exploring music and continuing to grow his presence in the Personal Training industry. He also helps out with a running club for Switchback trainees.”

Despite these positive early steps, James’s progress would not have been recognised if the only outcome measurements at the three-month mark were securing employment or accommodation.

“He wasn’t in employment or accommodation three months after his release, so we continued to support him past the 12-week period. James has now got sustainable housing, and he’s going to university to study business.

“Only now can I say that he’s achieved stability in a lot of ways, so that just shows the value of long-term support.

“If you looked at his outcomes on paper after three months, it wouldn’t have added up. If you look at where he is now, you can see he’s achieved so much.”

Abbie believes in working closely with probation to ensure the best outcomes for the trainee.

“In an ideal world, Switchback wouldn’t exist as probation would provide the support we offer. But they don’t always have the capacity, so we ask probation to rely on us to do the work they can’t do.”

“I always try to update probation officers on the progress of different individuals. Rather than telling them when one of the young adults on their caseload has secured a job or a qualification, I share personal milestones.

“For example, I might tell them about how an individual opened up to me about his offence and identified what triggered that behaviour. This would all be done confidentially, of course, just so they can see that the individual is engaging with the process.”

While collaboration is key to helping each trainee successfully resettle in the community, Abbie believes there is immense value in Switchback remaining distinct from statutory services.

“We create a different environment from probation and statutory services, and that’s intentional. We don’t have the power to recall someone, and I think that’s a vital thing for the 1-to-1 support.

“That’s why our work is so important. We can be that support system that’s separate from government.”

*We have used a pseudonym in this interview to protect the young adult’s identity

The Switchback Programme – Young Men Share their Stories of Resettlement

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We spoke to Ray* who took part in Switchback’s 12-week programme for young men leaving custody. Through intensive 1-to-1 support and real work training, the programme helps young men build a stable, rewarding life.

“I was still in custody when I found out about Switchback. One of my friends that I was in custody with got released and he would send me letters.

“He told me, ‘Things are going well. I’ve just joined this charity called Switchback.’ He said they specifically help people who have just left custody.”

Ray decided to reach out to Switchback, who invited him to join their 12-week programme.

“I went to the Switchback office, and they were very welcoming. I never knew that organisations like this even existed. I thought you literally just went to probation and that was it.

“It was a blessing. I was talking to positive people, people willing to help, put you into legit work, find you good opportunities.”

Ray was matched with a Switchback mentor to help him adjust to life after release.

“I would say the relationship with my mentor was the same as with everyone in that whole office. The mentors, the finance department, the CEO of the charity – everyone is there with the intention to help others. It just felt right with Switchback.”

Ray’s mentor was able to help him work through his career aspirations and goals.

“When I first joined the programme, I was asked about what I want to do and my strengths. I expressed my interest in starting my own business. Making a clothing brand is a real passion of mine, something that I want to bring to fruition.

“We sat down, and we broke down my skill set. From that we made a business plan to take my ideas forward. I got an opportunity to bring it to life and do a presentation about it with other people, which was very cool.”

“They provide so much support. They have a list of organisations and companies where you can get training. And after the training, you can get a full-time job placement.”

One of the most important benefits of the Switchback programme is the intensive, 1-to-1 support that each trainee receives.

“What was most impactful for me was not necessarily what we were specifically speaking about, but the fact that there was so much frequent communication, not just a five-minute call. We were breaking down my time in custody, talking about my mental wellbeing.

“Being inside for four years is a very long time. You see the same faces, and you’re around a certain type of energy all the time.

“But at Switchback, everyone was so friendly. Being around that kind of energy just instantly raised the positivity within myself. I believe your environment can shape how you think and feel and what you do.”

Ray believes that Switchback’s mentors are incredibly diligent professionals who go above and beyond to support their trainees.

“I’ve personally witnessed them go out of their way to make phone calls to housing advisors and chase things up. They will always be on your side. They’ll find a way or find someone who can help you.”

Since completing the Switchback programme, Ray has joined the charity’s Experts by Experience (EbE) board. Members play a key role in shaping Switchback’s campaigning, policy priorities and programme development.

“EbE is where we have discussions about real important stuff that could potentially change new laws that are being passed. I’ve seen the difference and I’ve been able to meet people who I would never have been able to meet before.”

Ray and other members of EbE have had the opportunity to talk to politicians and policymakers at the Ministry of Justice – sharing their experiences and how the system could better meet the needs of young adults.

“You know that your voice can be heard, and that something can be done about it. Working with Switchback, what I have to say reaches the right people.”

Taking part in Switchback’s programme has made a huge difference to Ray’s life, so he is keen to raise more awareness of the charity’s work. Ray believes that the programme could be a blueprint for how all young adults can be successfully resettled back into the community.

“Not everyone in the world knows about Switchback, but if more people knew about them, other charities might follow in their footsteps. They’ll see that this is what works with young adults, and then more people coming out of prison will get the help they need.”

*We have used a pseudonym in this interview to protect the young adult’s identity

Helping Young Adults with Care Experience Thrive after Release

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