Jack: Accepting past mistakes and looking forward.
Jack was serving a custodial sentence. It was his first offence, but serious enough to warrant a prison sentence. He was greatly upset at being in prison and was reportedly in tears as he completed the paperwork for Upside on his birthday.
I visited Jack in prison on five occasions. On the first visit, he could barely look me in the eye and was clearly depressed and angry, vowing revenge on his victim for informing on him. It took some time to turn these feelings around and for Jack to accept the consequences of his actions. By my last visit, he was accepting of his situation and – although nervous about his release – he was looking forward positively to changing his ways when back in the community.
Jack’s chief wish was for me to support him in finding a job. He had never worked legitimately and understood it was his unemployment and addiction issues that had led him to making terrible decisions in the past. He used cocaine and cannabis prior to prison but having been ‘clean’ whilst inside he wasn’t requesting any form of recovery when back in the community as he felt he has kicked these bad habits. However, he did agree that if he felt this changed whilst in the community, he would reach out to me to help him engage with recovery services.
Jack has now been released on a Home Detention Curfew and is staying with his mum and spending time with his gran. He has stayed clean from cocaine and avoided friends who have been a bad influence in the past.
He has registered with Routes to Work and is keen to enrol in training courses or any work that is suitable for him. Coincidentally, the same day he signed up with Routes to Work, his Community Justice Social Worker contacted him to introduce herself and offer him a training scheme. He went along to this on his own as I wasn’t available at such short notice. This is a very encouraging and positive step for Jack. He has committed to starting a course with them for three days a week for four weeks which includes a health and safety course and his CSCS card; all the things he had told Routes to work earlier in the week that he wanted to do.
Jack has ADHD and Autism for which he takes medication. This makes all the above just a little bit more complex for him but he is determined to turn things around. The most inspiring thing he said to me was that he would love to do my job. He thinks he could give people like him, who have made an impulsive mistake, a chance to turn their life around. I have high hopes for him that he can and will.