Annual Report 2019 Nottingham Trent University with First Class Honours in the Summer of 2019 Why Second Chances Remain the Longford Trust’S First Priority
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PO Box 64302 London NW6 9JP [email protected] www.longfordtrust.org @LongfordTrust The Longford Trust Registered Charity No. 1164701 Front cover: Longford Scholar Jacob Dunne celebrates his graduation from Annual Report 2019 Nottingham Trent University with First Class Honours in the summer of 2019 Why Second Chances Remain The Longford Trust’s First Priority The best-laid plans, as they say, often go awry. This year we have been encouraging those who are willing to share the Three weeks before our 2019 Longford Lecture, to stories of some of those challenges in the blog on our website (longfordtrust.(page 16) be given by the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, org/blog/), which we then promote to a wider audience of policy makers Dame Cressida Dick, it couldn’t have been going and campaigners for a better criminal justice system. We include more smoothly. We had a full house and a long an extract from our award-holder Shaun’s account of being released from waiting list for tickets, as well as new caterers in prison and given a tent by his probation officer to live in because there was no Liberty Kitchen, direct from HMP Pentonville. accommodation available for him. Then along came a December general election, Underpinning all our work is the Longford Trust’s lean, efficient office team which meant our speaker was under purdah rules that daily boxes above its weight. You can read inside accounts of their work for senior public servants, and we were back at by Philippa Budgen, Natasha Maw and Jacob Dunne, our scholarship and zero. Thankfully, Dame Cressida’s predecessor mentoring managers, and the curator of our app. But my thanks, too, must go and friend, Lord Ian Blair, a patron of the Longford to Jill Dale, who for the past 15 years has made sure that the ticketing for our Trust, agreed to step in at the last minute. His annual Longford Lecture goes smoothly. Jill’s first grandchild arrived in 2019 November lecture, “Where Next for Policing and Criminal Justice?” prompted a and she is stepping back from her work on the lecture, but will remain with us, lively public debate in the days(pages afterwards 5 and 6). about why there was so little about part-time, bolstering the fund-raising efforts. either vital subject in the election manifestos of the main parties. You can read (pages 19 and 20). some of what he said inside And 2019 has been a record year for income into the charity, up almost 30 per cent on last year So I want to take this moment to convey Thankfully not all of our plans over the course of 2019 suffered similar hiccups. our thanks to each and every individual, family, group, club, trust and company The trust has long been committed to growing our successful Longford who have supported us these past 12 months. Without you, we would achieve Scholarships programme, and this past year saw us make 26 awards of financial nothing. and mentoring support, a record number, to young serving and ex-prisoners to continue their rehabilitation by going to university. Over the 12 months, we A final sad note: 2019 ended with the tragic events at Fishmongers Hall, next to worked with almost 70 young men and women, some approaching final exams, London Bridge, where our great friends and collaborators, Learning Together, others just starting out on campus. were celebrating their fifth anniversary of promoting education in prisons. Two of their number, Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones, both brilliant, committed young I am delighted to report that, even with increased numbers, we have maintained people who had already made this world a better place, were killed by someone our success(see page rate at14) around 85 per cent of those who work with us graduating they were trying to help. A commitment to rehabilitation is never without and going on to degree-level jobs, with fewer than 4 per cent returning(pages to 4, 12, risk, but in the worst possible scenario our response to these heart-breaking 16prison and 17). Behind the headline figures are many remarkable events cannot be to stop believing in and working for rehabilitation. I attended individual stories, several of which are highlighted in what follows Jack’s funeral in Cambridge with my colleague Philippa. In my almost 60 years I have never been to a sadder event, but it would be sadder yet if all of us did not redouble our efforts, inspired by the memory of Jack and Saskia, to support We continue to work with employers in the public, private and third sectors(page people whom society has written off with second chances that enable them to 10)to offer our scholars the sort of work placements and internships that other realise their human potential. students take for granted as part of their preparation for the workplace . And our secure platform app provides an e-community of support for scholars that builds on the encouragement that our trained(page volunteer 18). mentors [email protected] Stanford give on a one-to-one basis to our award holders to help them navigate the Director additional challenges that many experience at university 2 1 What the Longford Trust Does “Exactly What I Was Hoping For” Since it was established in 2002 by friends, family and admirers of the former Labour cabinet minister and lifelong prison visitor, Lord Longford (1905-2001), the Longford Trust has focussed on three particular areas in its efforts to continue his distinctive work for penal reform. The first is our annual Longford Lecture, held since 2002 in the spectacular round Assembly Hall of Church House, Westminster, home of the Church of England’s General Synod. Speakers have included a Nobel Laureate (Archbishop Desmond Tutu), a Head of State (President Mary McAleese of Ireland), the Metropolitan Police Commissioner (Ian Blair), the Head of the Supreme Court (Brenda Hale) and more recently (pictured above) a former Lord Chancellor (Michael Gove) as well as writers Michael Palin and Will Self, and the campaigners Bianca Jagger and Clive Stafford Smith. Ashley Rookwood began his university studies while inside, having been excluded from school at The second is the Longford Prize, awarded annually by a distinguished the age of 15. In 2018, he started an MSc in behavioural judging panel to an individual or organisation showing outstanding qualities of courage, humanity and persistence in the field of prison economics at City of London University on day release reform. Past winners have included Circles UK, Prisoners Abroad, HMP from an open prison, with the support of the trust and his Grendon, Pact, National Prison Radio and the founder of the Shannon Longford mentor, Will Stadlen. “We’re a good match and Trust, Christopher Morgan. he’s exactly what I was hoping for,” 28-year-old Ashley And the third is our Longford Scholarships programme, started in 2005. told us after their first meeting. It has since supported more than 300 young serving and ex-prisoners to continue their rehabilitation through studying for a degree at a UK He graduates next summer and has done internships university. Awards include both financial help and one of the trust’s in financial institutions and at Eurasia Group. He plans trained group of volunteer mentors. one day to start his own business. With the trust, he has “If we are really concerned with the reform of prisoners, been active in encouraging others on our secure app what we do when they emerge from custody is at least platform, has addressed the senior management team as important as what we do for them while they are at the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority on recognising inside.” rehabilitation, and been trained in interview technique and CV writing at our partner organisation, the law firm Mayer Brown. He has been a delegate at the One Young 3Lord Longford (1994) World Summit in London. 4 2019 Longford Lecture: Ian Blair on Criminal Justice At short notice Lord Ian Blair, former Metropolitan Police Commissioner, stood in for his friend and successor but one, Cressida Dick, who had to withdraw because of general election purdah rules. Taking as his theme, “Where Next for Policing and Criminal Justice?”, he pulled no punches in front of a near capacity audience in Church House, Westminster on November 21. The British legal system and its police service, he said, “look very tattered...my overriding image of those of us who care about criminal justice in its widest sense is that of the frog being boiled slowly, so it does not really notice.” His plea, made during a General Election campaign, was for “a systematic, holistic review of the whole system, concerned with outputs, not inputs, crossing departmental boundaries both inside and outside the criminal justice system, to see what works and what does not, and where resources can best be spent to prevent crime and victimisation. In my view, the system is not yet actually broken but it is so neglected as to be a matter of serious national concern.” The text of his lecture, chaired by broadcaster The 2019 Jon Longford AllSnow, photos is by on Russell our Bruns website, with audio and film Lectureversions was sponsoredavailable. by 6 5 The Longford Prize 2019 Outstanding Achievement The Longford Prize celebrates organisations and The judges, chaired by individuals that have made an outstanding contribution Longford trustee and former to prison reform. Nominations are made by members of prison governor, John the public to a distinguished panel of judges. Podmore, also made an award (picturedfor Outstanding left) Individual Contribution to Jezz Wright, founder of WayOut TV, a two-channel television station that delivers to an audience of 30,000 prisoners in 30 jails.