 ABOUT US New Bridge was founded in 1956 to create links between the offender and the community. The intention is not to forget the victims of crime but to prevent more people becoming victims. New Bridge offers a wide range of programmes to help prisoners keep in touch with the outside world and prepare themselves to rejoin it. Our original and keynote service remains the friendship and support given by our 203 volunteers to longer-term prisoners, especially those no longer in contact with family and friends. Every volunteer knows his or her prisoner client as an individual with their own personality, problems and potential and values them as such. The relationship cannot otherwise work. A similar approach hallmarks all our other projects and makes them particularly effective. Unless a resettlement or parenting programme is sufficiently sensitive and flexible to recognise and respond to the individual, often multiple, needs of the offender it is trying to assist, it will not provide him or her with any lasting benefit. Of course, this means the work is much more time consuming but it makes it infinitely more useful to prisoners and rewarding to staff and volunteers. 2006 saw the start of New Bridge's work in mentoring. It is especially important for us to ensure that our good work in prisons is not undone through any lack of support once in the community. We are now able to link prisoners in HMP/YOI Swinfen Hall with mentors in the community. Volunteers are not simply extra pairs of hands. They bring prisoners personal warmth, a variety of special skills, experience of life and proof that the community has not given up on them. OBJECTIVES New Bridge achieve its objectives by befriending men, women and young people in prison through a national network of volunteers; by running projects in specific prisons focusing on resettlement needs; and by encouraging the public to accept the need to reintegrate ex-offenders into the community. EXCITING NEWS Lottery Win for New Bridge 'London Through the Gate' project commenced March 2008 New Bridge has been awarded a three year grant by Big Lottery Fund. The money is being used to develop the befriending service in London, specifically helping short term prisoners in local gaols on the transition back to life in the community. The project has been a year in development, going through the Big Lottery two stage application process. Research included working with short term prisoners in HMP Brixton. The focus groups were asked if they would welcome and use the support of a volunteer. 75% of prisoners felt they had no-one on the outside to support them. All but one was on at least their second prison sentence. One prisoner was starting his seventh! The overwhelming message from Brixton was if a volunteer got to know someone when they were inside, it could really make a difference to how they will get on once outside. The project will work in five London prisons including Holloway and will employ two staff. To donate now, please follow this link: www.bmycharity.com/new-bridge The New Bridge Foundation - A company limited by guarantee registered in England Registered Company No: 5048063 Registered Charity No: 1103511 Registered office: 27a Medway Street, London, SW1P 2BD updated 30/06/2008 |