Inspiring Speakers

Success stories of people turning their lives around are powerful messages of hope for people in prison, and hearing from people with lived experience of the criminal justice system can help to inspire and motivate them to lead crime free, positive lives in the future.

Entrepreneurs Unlocked is proud to have commenced its ambassador programme back in 2023, and collaborates with people who have set up their own enterprises who now come back into prison to share their story of moving from criminality to successful entrepreneurs,

They will provide an open and honest assessment of their lives and highlight how they used their skills and talents to become the person they are today. They all describe how now they realise that “crime doesn’t pay in the long run” and sleeping soundly at night in your own bed is so much better than being in a prison cell or waiting for the police to come and say “hi” early in the morning.

This half day session is for participants to hear from one of our ambassadors, and to use their story to enable them to explore if self-employment and starting a business as a means of earning a legitimate income post-release is something for them to consider. It enables them to recognise their talents and provides insights into the type of self-employment they could consider.

Alongside the inspiring speaker element, the participants can consider:

•       Their own entrepreneurial skills and talents
•       Types of self-employment and why it could be for the participant.
•       Advantages and disadvantages of being self-employed.

At the end of session, they complete a simple feedback form which is analysed and provided back to the prison in a written and infographic format. Participants are also provided with “The Little Book of Success” that provides an extensive range of case studies of former prison residents who have set up their own business.

The participants would gain insights into the potential to be self-employed and have increased confidence and motivation. This can be utilised to facilitate future learning opportunities and engage more positively with education and resettlement services as they can see the value in this pathway in their rehabilitation journey.

We ask what 3 words describe your thoughts after the session as well as what does success mean to you?

You can see the results from one of our sessions below: