Print this page   |  Home
 

Outcomes – how we measure the work we do

As a small organisation, with a limited budget, we have a responsibility to both our donors and the people we support, to ensure that we spend our money wisely. We do this by a process of constant evaluation, refinement and improvement.

Once every three years we conduct a large scale evaluation by consulting every Briton we are supporting in prison overseas. The findings of our most recent exercise helped improve the services we offer, and fed into the development of our latest Strategic Plan. A copy of our evaluation report can be downloaded here.

We adhere to the PQASSO quality standard to ensure we run the organisation as efficiently as possible. PQASSO is run by the Charities Evaluation Services, and is the standard Quality Mark for the third sector.

Listed below are the aims of our work. All our resources go to improving the lives of our service users (be they prisoners, families of prisoners, or released prisoners returning to the UK) or campaigning for change.

Supporting prisoners

If you are in prison overseas, our services aim to support you in the following ways:

  • Reduce your hunger and malnutrition. Our monthly grants pay for food and vitamins for those most in need.
  • Maintain your health. We will help you to gain access to the medical care you need. Our Medical Fund can pay for treatment and medication if no-one else will.
  • Reduce your isolation. We can send you newspapers, magazines and books. We will try to match you with a suitable pen-pal. Our freepost envelopes mean you can write to anyone, anywhere in the world, for free.
  • Increase your understanding of prison and judicial systems. Our series of information sheets help to explain complicated subjects in a simple and jargon-free way.
  • Increase your familiarity of UK and UK systems. Our Preparation for Release programme will help you to be ready for the challenges that will start the day you are released.
  • Reduce your discomfort in prison. Small things like extra clothes in winter and bed sheets can make a big difference to quality of life in prison.
  • Reduce your anxiety and increase your morale and self-confidence. By providing you with the means to communicate, to know your rights and understand the process, we help you to make decisions for yourself.

Family support

We offer support to any relative or close friend of a British citizen imprisoned abroad. These services, like all of the work we do, are free and confidential. Our work in this area is targeted to achieve these outcomes.

  • Reduce your anxiety. Family members often tell us there is no-one they can talk to without embarrassment. We offer non-judgemental support via our freephone telephone service, and can put people in contact with others in similar situations. We’ve helped hundreds of people through their own unique situation, and that experience helps us to help others.
  • Help you be better informed. We often hear news first, either from the prison or from our close contact with the Foreign Office. We also have a good understanding of how the system works, so we can help you navigate the complexities of a strange system.
  • Help you retain family contact and other relationships. By helping prisoners correspond with the outside world, we bring them slightly closer to you. We can also book visits to prisons, so that the foreign language becomes less of a barrier to you staying in touch.
  • Increase your understanding of prison and judicial systems. All of our information sheets and country briefings are available on our website, or can be sent via the post, free of charge.
  • Help you be better prepared for your return. The return of a loved one can bring with it a whole new set of challenges. Our Resettlement Team begin the process of preparing you for what to expect months before it happens, so that you can be ready for the homecoming.
  • Reduce your isolation. Our regular family days allow you to talk to others going through a similar set of emotions, and to develop friendships to help you in what are often lonely times.

Resettlement

For ex-prisoners returning to the UK, an uncertain future often awaits. Family ties may have been weakened, or may have never been present; a large number of the people we support have no relatives in this country. Accommodation, employment, debt: all are issues faced on a daily basis by ex-prisoners. We seek to help in the following ways:

  • Reduce your anxiety about resettlement. By helping you to be better informed about what to expect, and by simply being here to guide you along the way. Better prepared for return. Our Preparation for Release programme starts months before your release, helping you to make arrangements and plans for your future whilst you are still incarcerated.
  • Help you to access appropriate medical treatment. Our experienced resettlement team can guide you to the appropriate source of medical assistance.
  • Help you into stable accommodation. Our aim is that you should never be forced to sleep on the street. We work with local councils, charities and private landlords to find you somewhere you can call home.
  • Help you secure a regular source of income. We aim to ensure you have enough money for food and your basic needs. We do this by helping you claim the benefits you’re entitled to, and when there are no other options, through our grants programme.
  • Work with you to address your long-term health and/or addiction issues. We have links to other agencies providing specialist advice and services to people with alcohol, drug or other long-term addiction issues. We will help you gain access to the support you need.
  • Create employment opportunities. By signposting you to appropriate education, retraining and employment agencies, we help you to take the first steps on your way to a job and being able to support yourself.
  • Increase your dignity, health and wellbeing. We recognise that the transition from prison to ‘normal’ life can be difficult, especially for those who have been incarcerated for many years. We treat everyone as an individual, deserving of respect and dignity. We will help you adapt to your new life.
  • Increase your ability to return ‘home’. Going back to your family can be difficult, both practically and emotionally. By working with you and your family, we can help you all towards a shared future.

Campaigning

Campaigning on limited resources is always a challenge, so when we do it we need to do it in a smart and focussed way. Our campaigning goals are:

  • To change working practices and policy of external organisations. These include the British Foreign Office, the Ministry of Justice, the Police, and the benefits agency. We will seek to ensure the needs of Britons imprisoned overseas are not overlooked in key policy decisions.
  • Improve conditions for Britons in foreign prisons. By working with other like-minded organisations around the world. Prisoners Abroad is a member of the European Conference on Probation.
  • Increase profile and awareness of Prisoners Abroad. By speaking out on issues that affect the people we work with, we will ensure that they are not forgotten.