Criminology placement with YCG

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Prison training programme transformed by BSU Criminology students

Two final-year Criminology students have been working as part of a new placement project between BSU and social enterprise Your Consultation Group (YCG), to digitise a training programme for people in prison and for prison leavers. 

With almost 88,000 people in prison in England and Wales, making learning accessible is vital for helping to successfully reintegrate people into their communities upon release. 

BSU’s Criminology team seized the opportunity to join up with YCG, a company dedicated to this vital endeavour, to rejuvenate an education programme for people in prison and prison leavers. 

Students Hollie Morris and Emma Jones secured the first placements. Working diligently, they have turned a previously in-person and written critical thinking and personal development course by YCG, Chrysalis, into an interactive digital learning experience. 

Transforming a vital course for equipping and empowering people

Chrysalis is aimed at all learners in and leaving prison. It is an enabler for those who do not normally engage with educational or vocational activities. It increases personal skills and knowledge, helping learners to reflect, plan effectively, develop literacy skills, time management, self-motivation, work ethic and self-confidence. 

Hollie and Emma have transformed Chrysalis into an interactive digital format, managing the strict security protocols of the platform, and putting their knowledge and digital literacy to the test to produce a learning tool that can help more people. 

Reflecting on the transformation of this vital course, Mark Hodge, Group Chairman of YCG, said: 

“This is the first time an interactive modular, self-paced learning tool has been designed for use within prisons. The result of this work, I am very proud to say, is an immersive learning tool that will substantially assist learner engagement.
  
“The course will be the cornerstone of our Pathways Programme for the upskilling of prisoners into employment on release, and will be supplemented by a range of courses provided by BSU designed to help prisoners into employment.”

Providing invaluable real-world experience

Not only does the partnership provide an opportunity to support people in prison and by extension the communities they’re returning to, but it also provides students with the invaluable opportunity to experience work in the criminology sector. And this is thanks to the Bath Spa Works internship scheme. 

Emma, final-year Criminology and Sociology student on the placement, said:

"I am very grateful to have had the opportunity for this internship with the Bath Spa Works programme. It has enabled me to gain experience in my desired field of work and make valuable contacts for potential job prospects.

“It has been incredibly rewarding, especially working on a project which I am very passionate about. I am very thankful for all the support and assistance the university offered and provided."   

Hollie, final-year Criminology and Sociology student, really enjoyed the placement experience and learning new skills as a result. She reflected: 

“I appreciate being selected for this role and have learnt many new skills along the way, such as my digital and teamwork skills.

"This opportunity has given me valuable work experience that will benefit my CV and also allowed me to further understand the hard work that goes into projects like this.” 

A creative and fulfilling partnership

Senior lecturers in Criminology at BSU, Dr Faye Vanstone and Dr Natalie Booth, Undergraduate Programme Leader and Postgraduate Co-programme Leader respectively, established the partnership and placement project with YCG. Following a successful first placement, they reflected: 

“This unique partnership provided a wonderful opportunity for our criminology students Emma and Hollie who have worked exceptionally hard on this project and have subsequently produced an outstanding product for YCG. 

“Hollie and Emma have illustrated excellent awareness of the need to provide inclusive resources for people with convictions and demonstrate knowledge and awareness of the wide range of capabilities of prison learners and leavers.

“This is no small feat and consequently they have both made a fantastic impression on the YCG and have illustrated creativity and outstanding digital literacy.”

Are you interested in following Emma and Hollie’s footsteps? Studying Criminology at BSU could be the next step.