This week we’re joined by Rhia a mother, a widow, and a woman who has transformed deep adversity into a driving force for change. In the aftermath of her partners death, her life took a turn, and she would soon become involved in drug activities, resulting in a 2-year prison sentence. Having personally experienced the justice system from both sides, she now dedicates her time to helping women rise beyond trauma and rebuild their lives through her organisation Fly Girl Foundation.

This podcast is also available as a video – just search Life After Prison on YouTube.

Organisations:

• Fly Girl Foundation - Empower women and girls affected by trauma and the criminal justice system. Creating safe spaces, mentoring and creative programmes to support healing, confidence and positive life change

• Daddyless Daughters - Support girls and young women who have been affected by family breakdown, abuse and adversity across London between the age of 14 - 30 years old.

• The Triangle Trust - Fund small and medium-sized organisations working within the criminal justice system. Focusing particularly on projects that support people with convictions — including women and young people — to reduce reoffending and improve rehabilitation outcomes.

• Working Chance (National) – Helps women with convictions get back into employment.

• The Shannon Trust - Helps people in prison and after release to improve reading and communication skills through peer-led learning.

Contact us:

If anything you’ve heard in this podcast has inspired you to make a positive change in your life, or you’d just like to get in touch, please contact us.

💬 Socials: @afterprisonpod on Instagram and X, @lifeafterprison on TikTok

📧 Email: podcasts@prison.radio

✉️ Write: Life After Prison, National Prison Radio, HMP Brixton, London SW2 5XF

🖥️ Website: https://lifeafterprisonpod.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we are joined by author and poet Will Pendray. His debut poetry collection Overgrown contains extracts from throughout his sentence, where he would use poetry to work through the things he was dealing with. Whilst serving his sentence, Will began studying at Open University and would go on to complete an MA in Creative Writing. He now uses poetry to inspire change, returning to prisons and communities to share his work and story.

Useful Organisations

• Safe Ground – Use storytelling, creative writing, and the arts in prisons to help people reflect, build identity, and support rehabilitation.

• Clean Break – They use theatre, writing, and storytelling to empower women affected by the criminal justice system, helping them express their experiences and build new opportunities.
• Longford trust - Supports people with convictions to access higher education while in prison and after release. Provides scholarships, mentoring, and employability support to help individuals build brighter futures and reduce reoffending.
• National literacy trust - a UK charity dedicated to improving reading, writing, speaking and listening skills among children and young people. It works with schools, communities and businesses to tackle literacy inequality and help disadvantaged pupils reach their full potential.
• Unbarred Press - an independent UK publisher that showcases writing and artwork created by people in prison and after release. It provides a platform for underrepresented voices, helping writers gain recognition, confidence and opportunities beyond the criminal justice system.

This podcast is also available as a video – just search Life After Prison on YouTube.

Contact us:

If anything you’ve heard in this podcast has inspired you to make a positive change in your life, or you’d just like to get in touch, please contact us.

💬 Socials: @afterprisonpod on Instagram and X, @lifeafterprison on TikTok

📧 Email: podcasts@prison.radio

✉️ Write: Life After Prison, National Prison Radio, HMP Brixton, London SW2 5XF

🖥️ Website: https://lifeafterprisonpod.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we’re joined by speaker and author Charlie-Sam Newman, whose mission is simple, ‘To help people unlock their true potential’. From a very young age Charlie had experienced traumas that would shape her adolescence. After seeking safety at a women’s refuge at the age of 3, years would follow where safety and stability were rare, and violence and abuse were often close by. Following years within the care system, she would find herself at the centre of a drugs conspiracy, facing a possible 14-year prison sentence. But a lot has changed since then and today she no longer lives in silence, using her story to inspire, mentor and empower others to unlock their true potential.

Useful organisations:

Radical Recruit - Help people with barriers to work secure employment and regain control of their futures. Aiding them access to fair opportunities and meaningful work.

Create Future Opportunities – they support people on their rehabilitation journey and run fantastic activity hubs where community is built and futures can take shape.

Support to Soar Focused on empowering individuals and organisations to reach their true potential. We create change that lasts by opening doors for those who’ve been overlooked and building inclusive teams that drive business growth and social good.

This podcast is also available as a video – just search Life After Prison on YouTube.

Contact us:

If anything you’ve heard in this podcast has inspired you to make a positive change in your life, or you’d just like to get in touch, please contact us.

💬 Socials: @afterprisonpod on Instagram and X, @lifeafterprison on TikTok

📧 Email: podcasts@prison.radio

✉️ Write: Life After Prison, National Prison Radio, HMP Brixton, London SW2 5XF

🖥️ Website: https://lifeafterprisonpod.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.