Second chances: will hiring ex-offenders ever be mainstream in retail?

Multiple high street retailers and supermarket chains [see box] are now scaling up recruitment programmes that proactively recruit from the pool of 14 million people in the UK with a criminal record. And now some are looking for government support to turn what was once a limited CSR exercise into a standard recruitment stream. Only last month, senior management at Iceland met with the new minister for prisons to talk through a blueprint inspired by their own Second Chance Initiative. So, what exactly is incentivising more and more retailers to invest in such schemes? How does it work? And why should others follow suit?  

The first retail-led recruitment schemes targeted at ex-offenders dates back two decades.  

In 2002, James Timpson, then chief executive at Timpson Group, made a visit to HMP Thorn Cross in Warrington. There he had a “chance meeting” with a young prisoner named Matt. Matt was “very chatty, very articulate and had a sparkly, big personality”, says Darren Burns, head of the Timpson Foundation.

“James liked him and thought he’d make a great addition to the business, so he gave Matt a business card and said ‘give me a call when you’re released.’” Two months later, Matt was handed a job and went on to excel.   

“James thought if there’s one great candidate like Matt in one small prison in the Northwest, surely there's going to be hundreds if not thousands of people who just need that opportunity,” explains Burns. “It’s then we began to proactively recruit ex-offenders into the Timpson business.”  Two decades on, around 12% of its workforce is made up of people who’ve either directly been recruited from prison or have an offending background. 

Hot on its heels was Greggs. The food-to-go retailer’s Fresh Start programme works with people leaving prison and has been up and running for almost 15 years, says chief executive Roisin Currie. “It’s something we are hugely proud of and passionate about. Not only is it socially responsible but it also enhances our workforce.”  

For years though, the Timpson Group and Greggs remained among a handful of companies openly discussing such schemes. It’s why, when Cook began considering its own, there was nervousness about how it would land, admits head of social impact Annie Gale.  

Though “it sprung from a desire to leave people in the place we're part of a little bit better than we found them,” there was no illusion it would lead to instant praise and plaudits. Public perceptions were still split, she points out. Tabloid headlines poked fun at Timpson for teaching ‘ex-robbers’ how to cut keys.

Even Burns admits “the first instinct was to kind of sneak Matt in and say, for God's sake, don't tell anybody you're from prison because it will cause chaos”. (They didn’t). 

But now, all that is starting to change. “In these last, say, three to five years, I would say, it's suddenly a topic which is spoken about and very much encouraged,” says Gale. “It feels like one of the last standing taboos that’s being tackled.”   

The change in attitudes isn’t universal. A 2023 survey by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, for example, found that two thirds of employers still say concerns about the safety of existing staff members would stop them from hiring ex-offenders. 

There are challenges. Some candidates have no experience of formal work, says Gale. Or they may struggle with the chasm between prison culture and the one they encounter in a kitchen or a retail store. Burns say Timpson Group is careful to work with people “ready to make a change” to mitigate some of these potential teething problems.

“The worst thing we could do would be to give a role to somebody who’s still in the midst of offending people or who isn’t ready to hold down a job.” A full risk assessment is also carried out at the point of interview.  With these steps in place, he believes safety shouldn’t be a factor.

“There are 14 million people who do have a conviction more serious than a driving offence, that is almost one-sixth of the UK population,” he says. “For us to assume that this whole swathe of the population is inherently dishonest, perhaps even dangerous or chaotic, with nothing to offer us, is madness.” 

In retail at least, there’s a growing cohort of businesses that agree any risks are eclipsed by the huge upsides.

“Everybody wins,” believes Burns. “The offenders win because they are not wasting their lives in prison. The offenders’ families win—children, wives, husbands, partners, siblings and parents—because they are not losing their loved ones on sentences. And the taxpayer wins because the £18 billion a year [the estimated cost of reoffending] is significantly reduced.”

61% of prison leavers will re-offend within two years of leaving custody, he says. “That is reduced to 19% if people have full-time employment.” 

Businesses win too. Though every single one of the retailers that Retail Week speaks to highlights how such initiatives are the right thing to do from a moral perspective, there’s unquestionably a compelling commercial case too. 

“There is a clear economic benefit for employers,” agrees Claire Costello, chief people and inclusion officer at The Co-operative, which launched its own centrally coordinated programme for hiring people with convictions last year.

“Research [by the New Futures Network] has shown that when recruited into a suitable role people with convictions have a much higher engagement and retention level. This can reduce recruitment costs and drive better productivity through tenured experience.” 

At Iceland, which launched its Second Chance scheme two years ago, statistics from its HR team suggest those recruited via the team have 20% better retention, 20% fewer sick days and 20% less turnover, says Paul Cowley, its director of rehabilitation.

“If you do this with integrity and follow through with it these men and women want to work and do stay with you,” he says. “They are loyal. There are financial benefits in the long term, so you’d be crazy not to do it. And it's also the right thing to do. People deserve second chances.” 

What’s more, there’s arguably never been a better moment to kickstart efforts – and ask government to incentivise other retailers to get involved.