Alexandra Wilcock
Glasgow Caledonian University
Alec Wersun
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Freedom Unlimited is a social enterprise
business, established in 2014 that aims to provide training and employment
opportunities for people with criminal convictions.
Offenders who have served their sentence, and are looking to rehabilitate, and create a better life for themselves struggle to gain employment when they get released.
The lack of support available led to an innovative business idea. ‘Seamless Transitions’ was the first enterprise set up under FUE, initially the enterprise created memory cushions (with shirts, or fabric representing the lost individual). Memory cushions fit with the mission of the enterprise of love, loss and loyalty, the cushions range has since expanded.
‘Seamless Transitions’ was mainly targeted at employing women ex-offenders, and following its success, FUE identified similar opportunities for male offenders. From this FUE opened a wood workshop creating products from timber that would otherwise be sent to landfill. ‘Crafted with Conviction’ (FUE registered Trade Mark) has seen a great success and creates social benefit, as well as positive environmental impact.
Many job applications do not get a first look if the applicant states they have a conviction. This makes it very difficult for ex-offenders to reach the interview stage, let alone a job. This denial of equal opportunity leads to people with convictions re-offending due to lack of confidence, limited opportunities, social networks and skills, and the recent work experience demanded by employers. Ex-offenders need the support to rehabilitate and fully reintegrate society - they need to be given hope for a better future.
FUE helps people with criminal convictions to gain employment by developing skills that will aid in the prevention of re-offending. Ultimately, FUE provides a second chance to prisoners with convictions (PWC’s).
FUE does not only provide a job for people coming out of prison, rather it works as a rehabilitation programme. FUE works with prisons to deliver workshops and skills development courses (communication, attitude, and employment), this ensures the rehabilitation process begins much before an offenders’ sentence is served and provides support and hope for offenders at an early stage.
“I was working nightshift for Tesco doing my management training. I just hated it. One day I met this guy who had a criminal record, he couldn’t get a job and he was really cut up about it. I was, like, why can’t you get a job? He said because I have a criminal record. I thought what difference does that make? Surely you can get a job? He was like no. It doesn’t quite work that way.”
Inspiration comes in many forms. For Josee Scott – it was a random encounter with a man who changed her perspective on life. The simple idea? To set up a business which would allow PWC’s a second chance. Combining a business idea which would allow PWC’s to secure gainful employment, as well as build the confidence to organize their lives into something really positive and constructive. Josee calls the process ‘calling out the Gold In People’ – the idea that every person can change, everyone has something within them. It just needs to be found. This is the drive that pushes the business to succeed and becoming a sustainable enterprise will allow for reinvestment to help even more PWC’s. FUE came from the discovery that unemployment is the second biggest contributing factor to re-offending.
The challenge was to produce something using up-cycling principles. Anything destined for landfill is a product Josee and the team strive to transform with innovative thinking. For example, linen is recycled into cushions. Memory cushions are a key product recycling clothing, graffiti building site wood is recycled into tables, desks and benches, as well as coasters for a cup of tea! The list is endless and with each influx of new employee comes new and innovative ideas! It is amazing!
FUE positively impacts
those who have criminal convictions, and by extension the communities in which
they live as they become responsible citizens. PWCs are mentored and employed
by Josee to help them transition back into the community from a difficult
background, or prison.
The Enterprise makes a variety of products including; cushions, Wellie Wheekers (handy tool that makes “taking your Wellies off” easy), coffee tables and benches. The materials used to create these products are, dead wood from the botanic gardens and graffiti recycled plywood that would be placed in a landfill if not used by FUE. Waste materials are therefore re-purposed in a positive manner, which in turn has a positive impact on the community.
FUE is still fairly new, having been founded in 2014. As a result, the aim is to continue to grow and contribute to achievement of the UN SDG 10, “reduced inequalities” and SDG 8 “decent work and economic growth”.
The mission and business of Freedom Unlimited Enterprise is associated with the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) is associated with the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs):
Despite being a small social enterprise, FUE, provides PWC’s with employment opportunities, and their structure as a Community Interest Company (CIC) status that allows them trade commercially whilst fulfilling social aims. The profits and surplus are re-injected into the company to develop new products and employ more people. FUE is currently not wholly sustainable from it sales, so it uses its social mission and reputation to attract grants and donations.
Josee has solid plans to make her business fully sustainable in a number of ways. Firstly, by securing contracts from the Scottish Government, and secondly by creating a mobile shop in order to be able to attend more fairs to enable their clients to get “your name and values out, create a community, where people go buy your items online too”. She is also hoping to expand in the procurement sector, the Royal Botanic Gardens and Scottish Parliament shops. FUE successfully sells at Scottish Exchange Design in Edinburgh and this will soon expand to an outlet in Glasgow. She is aiming to have her products distributed in companies like “John Lewis, Debenhams, and Dobbies Garden Centre” (all major retailers in Scotland). Being a social enterprise is helping Josee to get advice from business developers, analysts, and social media experts from organisations such as Business GateWay, a local business-support network. Every day, Josee sees the benefits and effects that selling products has on her employees, it contributes to their motivation and gives them a validation of their work.
FUE is an organisation geared to offer great benefits to the local community, society and the overall environment. These benefits are earned through hard work within FUE. For Josee, reducing the inequalities which face PWCs was paramount from the outset.
With an above average re-conviction rate in Scotland, it is in society’s best interest to train and nurture PWC’s before and shortly after their release from prison, which FUE contribute does. When PWC’s are released from prison, they are referred to the organisation, which then teach them new skills and instil a sense of identity and belonging, which may have been lacking beforehand.
After speaking to several workers at FUE, it was clear to see the practical and mental benefits that the programme offered to the employees. The workers have not just gained woodwork and sewing skills, they felt part of a ‘family’ and were motivated to find further work in other areas of society, something they themselves admit would not have been possible without a programme such as FUE.
In addition to working with PWC’s outside of prison, Josee and her team prepare the groundwork for their success during their sentence as well. By visiting and conducting classes with the inmates, FUE is able to motivate and include the prisoners. The aim of this exercise is not just to reduce social exclusion within the inmates, but to ease their transition back into society upon their release.
Along with the significant benefits to society that FUE
offers, there are environmental benefits also. When acquiring resources to make
the products, over 80% percent of raw materials are sourced from
organisations that are looking to send ‘scrap’ to landfill. For example, Josee
showed our team a pillow that was designed and produced by a PWC, this product
had been made out of fabric samples that were destined for landfill. FUE offer
a tangible benefit to the environment, as the sourcing policy of the
organisation is centred around retrieving items which may be useless to larger
organisations, they collect and receive the materials. This proved vital to
FUE, thus, reducing the footprint of these larger firms.
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Freedom Unlimited is a social enterprise business, established in 2014 that aims to provide training and employment opportunities for people with criminal convictions.
