ROBIN CORBETT AWARD

If you are a charity, social enterprise or CIC who supports re-integration in local communities for returning citizens, then we want to hear from you!

Applications for the 2024 Awards opens on 1st March 2024 and closes on May 17. If you have a good story to tell about supporting people both inside prison or after release, you stand a chance at winning one of three prizes: £5K, £3K or £1K. And obtaining national and local publicity which aids future fund raising. Plus a day to remember with a tour of the House of Lords and cream tea in the Peer’s Dining Room.

Thank you to all applicants who took the time to share your story and give an insight into your work for the 2022 Awards. It is always inspirational to see so many positive projects and organisations taking innovative and considerable steps in supporting returning citizens in life after prison. Though your project might not have won, do think about reapplying as in past years unsuccessful applicants became winners. Please consider your answers carefully on the application form – tell your story in a way our Judges can visualise.

The awards honour the work of Robin Corbett and his passion for prison reform which you continue to honour every day in your work.

MEET OUR JUDGES

– Lady Val Corbett, Founder
– Chair: David Apparicio MBE, JP (CEO The Chrysalis Programme)
– David Gauke, former Secretary of State for Justice
– Eoin Mclennan-Murray (Former Prison Governor/former Chair, Howard League for Penal Reform)
– Geoff Dobson OBE (Prison Reform Trust Trustee
– Ian Bickers former Head of London Prisons, Founder Unlocking Justice
– Jonathan Freeman (Managing Director, Earlsbrook Consulting Limited)
– Dr Kameel Khan (former Tax Judge, Founder ReMake)
– Nicholas Dear (Robin’s son-in-law, RCA Publicity Director)
– Pia Sinha, Director Prison Reform Trust
– Polly Corbett (Robin Corbett’s daughter)
– Tom Wheatley (President of Prison Govcernors Association)
– Wendy, a returning citizen

THE PRIZES

The winner receives £5,000; Highly Commended winner gets £3,000 and Commended winner receives £1,000 (thanks to our sponsors, the Chrysalis Foundation and St Modwen Housing).

The presentation is at the House of Commons, the three winners plus one colleague have a short tour of the House of Lords then have a delicious cream tea in the Peer’s Dining Room then attend the presentation ceremony.

Apart from the prize money, winners are then presented with an impressive glass plaque donated by James Timpson and a book about Lord Corbett written by Lady Corbett. The Award ceremony at the House of Lords precedes the meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Penal Affairs Group.

Our Publicity Director then sends a press release about the work of the winners to national and local media.

  1. The winner receives £5,000; Highly Commended winner gets £3,000 and Commended winner receives £1,000 (thanks to our sponsor, the Chrysalis Foundation: www.chrysalisprogramme.com )
  2. In normal times, when the presentation is at the House of Lords, we provide fares for the three winners plus one colleague each to travel to London. They then have afternoon tea at Member’s Dining Room in the House of Lords hosted by Lord Ramsbotham (Chair of the RCA Judges and Co-Chair Parliamentary Penal Affairs Group) and Lady Corbett.
  3. This is followed by a short tour of the House of Lords conducted by Lord Ramsbotham
  4. Winners are then presented with the prize money, an impressive glass plaque donated by James Timpson and a book about Lord Corbett written by Lady Corbett. The Award ceremony at the House of Lords precedes the meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Penal Affairs Group.
  5. A press release about their work is sent to national and local media.

During the pandemic the above is not possible so plaques and books will be sent by courier. We hope that when things go back to normal, future winners will be able to have their prizes presented at the Houses of Parliament.

Help us continue Lord Corbett’s legacy by reaching our goal of raising £50,000 by 2023. Please donate today as every penny helps. Thank you for your support! Bank details: Robin Corbett Award; sort code 200774; account no: 00275107

other benefits include

Raising significant awareness of the work the winners do. Not only will it highlight the example of good practice, but will also broaden their Brand reach.

Winners will get the chance for potential for new partnerships and developments. It will also increase their profile for future funding opportunities.
Nick Dear, the Award’s publicity director, will work with winners to create a press release to draw attention to their success in national and local media.

HEAR FROM
SOME OF OUR WINNERS

Our bike recycling project has had a hugely positive couple of years since winning the Robin Corbett Award. We’re about to move to a new, bigger workshop inside the secure area of the prison. We have hired an assistant for John (our wonderful workshop instructor, whom you met) so we can open 50 weeks a year, and we’re looking to launch a follow-on work placement scheme for ex-offenders servicing bikes for the public early next year. All this progress was kickstarted by the positive media coverage we got from the Award in 2017. So thank you!

Ed Norton
Development Manager Life Cycle UK

“It is fantastic to have recognition of our hard work across the country, from finding purposeful employment for the individuals we work with to assisting ex-prisoners with stable housing and supporting peer networks. The Award will allow us to expand our mental health and well-being support services, to offer new services and meet growing demand.”

Alasdair Jackson
CEO of Recycling Lives Charity

“It is wonderful to have our work connecting women in prison with employers who match their skills and aspiration recognised. The prize money will go directly towards the delivery of a planned programme of cross-sector events and open days and the profile that comes from the award will enable us to expand our operations and engage with a wider range of private sector employers.”

Maggie Walsh
CEO of A Fairer Chance

“It is wonderful to receive the Commended prize from this prestigious Award, and a vindication of the work of our organisation. We hope that the raised profile resulting from the Award will impact positively on our future funding enabling us to extend our work and the prize money will go towards this end."

Jo Burden
CEO of Circles South West

“We have used the RCA Award money to help fund a fulltime professional recruitment consultant in Birmingham to help us accelerate Inside Job. He is building relationships with local employers while our colleague, Jonathan, who is still serving his sentence, finds the best candidates inside. Those in prison and after released are worth investing in. I passionately believe when we raise the bottom rung of our society we all walk taller."

Heather Phillips
CEO Beating Time

“RMF are delighted to have been recognised for the training and employment we provide to currently serving prisoners as well as to those after release. We hope this Award and the successes RMF has experienced from training and employing those with previous offences, will encourage blue-chip companies and large projects such as Hs2 to modernise their recruitment channels and create real social value."

Dara McCarthy
Operations Manager, RMF Group

“We are absolutely delighted to win this Award. Looking at the calibre of previous winners, we have big shoes to fill! To be assessed as being amongst those organisations as peers, is a massive step for Code4000. Being fairly new in this space we are really pleased to be recognised in this way. We are super grateful to the MoJ and New Futures Network for helping us to make this happen and look forward to reporting more graduates into highly paid tech sector employment. We have a really exciting year ahead of us in 2020, with female prisons coming on board and further expansion into London and this just kicks it off brilliantly."

Rod Anderson
Founder Code4000

“Winning the award has meant that we have had an incredible response on social media and Switchback is being celebrated by so many of our supporters and others in the Criminal Justice Sector. A massive THANK YOU to The Prison Reform Trust and the Robin Corbett Award for recognising the value of the work that Switchback does and for helping more people to hear about the incredible journey that our Trainees decide to embark on."

Alice Dawnay
CEO Switchback

We are so grateful to receive the 2023 Robin Corbett Award, recognising our work with people on long-term prison sentences. Our vision is a future where everyone can achieve their potential within and beyond prison, and we do this by supporting people on long sentences to plan for their life on release. We provide the financial support to turn that plan into a reality, and the ongoing support to stay on track after prison. Our support provides a bridge into employment, education and training, and supports positive transitions back into the community. We know that when we do this work, everyone benefits: the individual, their family, and the wider society. Thank you to the judges for believing in our work, it is an honour to receive this award in memory of Lord Robin Corbett, who felt as passionately as we do about the importance of rehabilitation, now and for the long term.

Kerryn Wotton
CEO The Hardman Trust

We are beyond thrilled to be Highly Commended winners of the Robin Corbett Award 2023 for the work that we do at HMP Brixton to help prisoners to prepare for a successful life after prison. Having the judges recognise our work means so much to us. It means we can help even more prison leavers to make a positive contribution in their communities and reduce re-offending.

Fadzai Dzimwasha
Head of Innovation and Growth

We're thrilled to be recognised by The Corbett Network. Our team work tirelessly to help returning citizens to change their lives for the better - to say they go above and beyond might sound cliched but it's exactly what they do. We start with a job - to give people structure, self-esteem and earnings - and then build out from there to help people with every area of their life - housing, finances, family, health and wellbeing, and so much more. Spending a day sharing our approach and experiences with others in this field has been a pleasure. Thank you to all at The Corbett Network for championing what we do and truly believing in second chances.

Jonathan Taylor
Chair of Trustees: Recycling Lives

DOING MORE: Growth Fund

We launched the Growth Fund in 2020, in order to help even more charities in their mission to support the re-integration of ex-offenders into society.

Each year we will aim to award further prizes of up to £10,000 to charities delivering on this mission.

Are you a charity helping the re-integration and support of returning citizens? Then we want to hear from you. Apply and see if we can help you.

Special thanks to the Barrow Cadbury Trust for their support in administering this Award.

get in touch

For more information on the Robin Corbett Award or the Growth Fund, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you!

Help us carry on Lord Corbett’s legacy by reaching our goal of raising £50,000 in 2023, by donating today. Every penny helps. Thank you!

logo for website

The Robin Corbett Award and The Corbett Network are trading names of
The Corbett Foundation | Social Enterprise: 11846765
All Rights Reserved | © The Robin Corbett Award 2020