Life After Prison

This week on Life After Prison, Jules is joined by Tim Haigh.Growing up around poverty, instability and trauma, he found himself caught up in crime from a young age. As a teenager, he was sentenced to nearly ten years in prison, and after his release became trapped in a cycle of addiction, offending and destructive choices that affected every part of his life. He lost friends, spent years battling heroin addiction, and reached a point where he knew something had to change. Instead of becoming another statistic, he made the decision to rebuild. Today, he’s been clean for more than two decades, works with young people, prisons and communities, and has written a book called The Leopard That Changed His Spots, sharing the lessons from a journey that took him from prison and addiction to a life of purpose. Organisations: Lived Experience Speakers - Uses real-life stories and lived experience to educate, inspire, and empower young people, helping them make positive choices and avoid crime, gangs, and exploitation. The organisation delivers workshops in schools, prisons, colleges, and community settings, focusing on prevention, rehabilitation, and personal development.  Switchback - Support young men leaving prison to build stable, meaningful lives through intensive one-to-one mentoring, employment support, and personal development.  Aspire2Change – They work with young people and adults at risk of offending or reoffending, offering mentoring, education, and skills training. Their focus is on building confidence, resilience, and opportunities to support positive life choices and reduce involvement in crime. 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.

Complete our 2025 Listener Survey: https://forms.gle/smJxoWJhr66qKG4Q7We’d love to hear from you! Every year, we ask the Life After Prison audience to complete a short survey. Your answers help us understand what’s working, what we can improve, and they also help us show our funders the real impact of the show. It only takes a few minutes and your feedback really does make a difference.Today, we’re joined by Marc Conway. Marc’s story is remarkable: from serving his first sentence at 15 and spending years on an IPP - a sentence with no set release date - to turning his life around inside prison, working in therapeutic and reform-focused environments, and now advocating for change to help others trapped by the system. We discuss his journey through prison, what life is really like on licence, and the work he’s doing now to shine a light on the IPP system and inspire hope for others still serving.This podcast is also available as a video – just search Life After Prison on YouTube. Useful Organisations:UNGRIPP - Campaigns on behalf of prisoners and ex-prisoners serving the Indeterminate Sentence for Public Protection (IPP) in England and Wales. Prison Reform Trust - a UK charity that works independently to create a fairer, more humane, and effective justice system by researching, advising, and campaigning for prison and sentencing reform. Kestrel Theatre Company - Create and deliver interactive performances and workshops, often using drama to support education, community engagement, and social change.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.

Complete our 2025 Listener Survey: https://forms.gle/smJxoWJhr66qKG4Q7We’d love to hear from you! Every year, we ask the Life After Prison audience to complete a short survey. Your answers help us understand what’s working, what we can improve, and they also help us show our funders the real impact of the show. It only takes a few minutes and your feedback really does make a difference.In this brand new series, Cellmate to CEO, Tony Supreme, CEO of Soul Surge Wellness, who has lived experience of the criminal justice system himself, talks to other CEO’s, leaders and changemakers about their transition from prison to leadership.In this episode Tony talks to Paula Harriott, the CEO of Unlock, a national advocacy charity supporting people with criminal records. Paula shares her inspiring journey from prison to CEO, discussing the obstacles she faced and how she overcame them one step at a time. They talk about the importance of patience, the power of support networks, and the necessity of self-reflection and transformation.Useful organisations: Unlock- Information & advocacy charity for problems caused by criminal records.User Voice- Supporting and developing leaders with lived experience of the justice system who meaningfully contribute to the reshaping of prisons and probation servicesRevolving Doors - Championing long-term solutions for justice reform that tackle the root causes of repeat, low-level crime and support people's journeys towards better lives.The Prison Reform Trust - An independent UK charity working to create a just, humane and effective penal system.Warrior Down - From meetings and workshops to wellness activities and peer support gatherings, this calendar is designed to help you stay connected on your recovery journey.Red Rose Recovery - Creating opportunities for people affected by drug and alcohol addiction, substance misuse, dual diagnosis and offending behaviours.Community Led Initiatives - Delivering a range of programmes including one-to-one mentoring and peer support for people on probation in Greater Manchester to drug and alcohol addictionContact 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.

Complete our 2025 Listener Survey: https://forms.gle/smJxoWJhr66qKG4Q7We’d love to hear from you! Every year, we ask the Life After Prison audience to complete a short survey. Your answers help us understand what’s working, what we can improve, and they also help us show our funders the real impact of the show. It only takes a few minutes and your feedback really does make a difference.In this brand new series, Cellmate to CEO, Tony Supreme, CEO of Soul Surge Wellness, who has lived experience of the criminal justice system himself, talks to other CEO’s, leaders and changemakers about their transition from prison to leadership.In this episode Tony, CEO of Soul Surge Wellness, interviews Dan Whyte, co-director of DWRM (Doing What Really Matters). Tony and Dan discuss the obstacles Dan faced while transitioning from 20 years in prison to leadership, particularly how he and his business partner created their business plan and theory of change document through phone and post while Dan was still serving his sentence. The conversation highlights the challenges of starting a business from prison, the value of education, and the importance of determination and passion.Useful organisations: DWRM- Doing What Really Matters- Empowering People through Education, Employability and Engagement to Create Cultures of Acceptance.Coracle- We believe that digital skills open up new opportunities. We want to help every prisoner increase their digital know-how and improve their life chances.Open University- Learn and LivePrisoners Education Trust- we work to transform prisoners’ lives through learning and use our research and expertise to improve prison education.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.

Complete our 2025 Listener Survey: https://forms.gle/smJxoWJhr66qKG4Q7We’d love to hear from you! Every year, we ask the Life After Prison audience to complete a short survey. Your answers help us understand what’s working, what we can improve, and they also help us show our funders the real impact of the show. It only takes a few minutes and your feedback really does make a difference.Today on Life After Prison we're joined by Big Stygs – an artist, entrepreneur, and community leader from Birmingham who’s turned his life around in a big way. From serving time in A-cat prisons and going viral inside, to now running multiple businesses and building a community hub to help others – this is a story about resilience, creativity, and proving you can always rewrite your future. This podcast is also available as a video – just search Life After Prison on YouTube. Useful OrganisationsKey4Life – uses music, sport, and mentoring to help young men leaving prison find purpose and employment. The Irene Taylor Trust – Music in Prisons – delivers music-making projects inside and post-release, helping people use creativity for change. Bounce Back – trains people in trades like painting, decorating, scaffolding, and helps them into work after release.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.