OFFENDER REHABILITATION

Helping to change the culture within Prisons and Approved Premises (APs)

“Staff develop greater compassion and understanding of the underlying needs driving offender’s behaviour”

 
 

Psychologically informed environments turn challenges into growth.

The GOALS programme has been designed to tackle the psychology of social exclusion and Offender Personality Disorders. The organising themes of the work are to build independence, self-esteem, inner strength, personal awareness, self-motivation and purposefulness - helping people to get the job/life that they want.

Background

Evidence from research in areas, such as Psychologically Informed Planned Environments (PIPEs) suggests that negative behaviours and outcomes in life can be strongly influenced by the culture within a prison, and perceptions that an individual has about themselves, their life situation and the opportunities that they perceive to be available to them on release. This in turn is linked to the fundamental building block of well-being, the individual’s sense of esteem or self worth.

Negative beliefs are often amenable to change and with new information, support and some effort on the part of the student, significant improvements can be made in both outlook and outcomes.

"Providing training and practical tools that promote self-esteem must be a prerequisite to all other interventions that seriously seek to promote lasting change in an individual learner that is sustainable over time."

Low self-esteem is strongly correlated to a range of negative social outcomes, including criminal recidivism, drug and alcohol abuse, failure to learn at school and dependency on benefits. Taking steps to address the root causes of low self-esteem and poor life outcomes is a prerequisite to developing the psychological health that can ensure sustainable employment.

Whilst a criminal record is a limitation to achieving employment in the case of some offences, there is good evidence to suggest that there are many employment opportunities for those that can demonstrate that they have learned from their mistakes and who are willing to learn new skills.

Willingness to learn is, in turn, a matter of personal responsibility fundamentally based on the belief a person has in their ability to learn and change. The GOALS programme gives participants the desire to take up learning opportunities whilst in custody and to find a job or training following release, thereby helping to establish a firm foundation for a sustainable future career path. It offers conceptual frameworks and practical tools for individuals to manage their personal and career development. It does this through a series of 'step-by-step' exercises, which compel people to take stock and to take action to move their lives forward.

Past Accreditations and Awards

  • OCN entry level and levels 1 and 2 mapped to QCA progression Awards

  • Institute of Leadership and Management staff professional development awards

  • Approved by HMPS (Granted by South West Regional Reducing Re-offending Board) under the Guidelines of PSO 4350

Benefits of GOALS

  • 30 years experience in both custodial and community settings

  • It can be delivered as a 3-day intensive course or integrated into a monthly curriculum.

  • Designed to engage and motivate reluctant and hard-to-reach learners to "want to learn"

  • Staff develop greater compassion and understanding of the underlying needs driving offenders' behaviour.

  • Courses available for both adult and young offenders

  • Multi-media approach gives accessibility to those with learning difficulties

  • Linked directly to 7 pathways: ETE and Attitudes Thinking and Behaviour

  • Explicit skills and employability focus

  • Rapidly builds trust between offenders and staff

  • A powerful gateway course to all other learning

  • Strong ongoing Mentoring theme

  • Gives learners a central role in defining their own learning plan

  • Train-the-trainer programme offers added value to providers

  • An excellent staff development programme that produces committed and inspiring teachers

  • Increases learner engagement, course retention and completions

  • Increases learners' soft skills in preparation for work

  • Powerful community links through leading national employment and training providers

Where GOALS fits

  • Ideal for Induction, sentence planning and short sentences

  • Pre-parole assessment

  • Peer led and tutor led Mentoring schemes

  • Pre-resettlement

  • Prior to, or following, access to offender behaviour programmes

  • Probation and post release engagement

Who can we support?

  • YOT’S

  • Parole Boards

  • Probation Services

  • HMPS

  • Prison Officer Training

 

Beverly McDonald - HM Hydebank Wood College on the GOALS programme.

 

A training system for all prison staff and offenders

‘When we look at the demographics of our Prison population we have people in our care who have experienced Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE). Through these trauma's they have become unmotivated with no confidence, no self-worth and low self-esteem.

Due to their ACE's and past chaotic lives they may not have had the opportunity to have people in their lives to motivate and encourage them to set and achieve goals. They are filled with anxiety and fear. They struggle to communicate effectively and tend to go through life living in their past and

"how life has always been". This leads to continued dependence on welfare, continued involvement with the criminal justice system and criminality, substance misuse and under achievement in life.

GOALS give the people in our care the opportunity to believe in their future. Positive Role modelling by the facilitators is key to establishing the foundations to an open and engaging arena for the participants. The programme empowers the participants to take charge of their lives, equipping them with skills to do this and challenge their past negative thought s and behaviours. The programme provides them with skills and strategies to replace the old negatives with new motivational positive thoughts and beliefs.

We believe that the main factor to the success of this programme within our establishment is the Self Esteem element. The full programme is valued and important though due to our service users and their issues and past ACE's we feel that self-esteem is the key to success for the GOALS programme. The success is evidenced immediately in custody with more positive engagement with staff, a more positive mood generally which can help with engagement for sentence planning, education, work based activities and the courage to ask for help. By having the courage and the realisation to ask for help, this then opens the door to addressing their risk factors for reoffending and providing the opportunity to change their journey through life’

Beverly McDonald, HM Hydebank Wood College

‘The learning profile of offenders suggests that we need the most committed, imaginative and well motivated teachers pursuing a curriculum with structure, relevance and appeal.’
Robert Newman, Youth Justice Board.
'GOALS offers an exciting teacher support package that will invigorate and refresh staff to deal more effectively with a wide range of students, whilst ensuring their own sustained well being.'

‘Thought provoking - inspirational and motivational - it makes sense of my feelings and fears and finds solutions to overcome barriers’.'