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澳门王中王论坛 wins at the Charity Film Awards
澳门王中王论坛 wins Gold at the 2023 Charity Film Awards for their film which is part of their Cell Street Repeat campaign.
Every month, hundreds of people are released from prison homeless. Two-thirds are likely to reoffend within a year 鈥 a cycle of Cell Street Repeat.
Without a home to go to after being released, it is virtually impossible to maintain or start drug rehabilitation, get a job, build back positive relationships, or reintegrate back into and contribute positively to society. Without somewhere to live, we are setting people up to fail.
Making sure people leaving prison have somewhere to live when released is the first step towards a fair chance. The cost of housing people coming out of prison is eclipsed by the financial, social and personal cost of reoffending. It makes practical, financial sense. Ending homelessness is possible.
It can feel like an overwhelming task trying to find somewhere to live after prison, with not much of a second chance.
It’s time we broke the cycle of and ensured all prison leavers have a home.
Following the publication of the , the Government has committed to funding transitional accommodation for all prison leavers at risk of homelessness. This is a step forward but there is still work to be done.
Learn more about our other campaigns
Kayley grew up around drugs, with her parents struggling with addiction.
At 16 she started hanging around what she describes as 鈥榯he wrong crowd鈥, started taking drugs, drinking and getting involved in crime. Before long she was addicted to crack and heroin and she was sofa surfing, never in settled accommodation. 鈥I felt vulnerable鈥, she said.
鈥I鈥檝e blocked most of it out, but it was a scary time. I was addicted to drugs, just thinking about my next hit.鈥
When she had accommodation, she was frequently cuckooed, with drug dealers using her home as a base, as payment. Other times, she was kicked out of accommodation, unable to pay rent because of her addiction.
She fell into sex work in order to fund her addiction, alongside stealing and other offences. She was in and out of prison, being sentenced eight times.
Every time she left prison, she was released back into her local area,聽without support, either into homelessness or unsuitable housing. She fell directly back into addiction every time and started reoffending.
She said: 鈥It was a never-ending cycle. I went into prison, came out, reoffended and went back. Even when I was moved out of area, I just ended up back with the wrong people, back in my old habits.鈥
Kayley left prison for the last time in December, in the height the pandemic and was housed with 澳门王中王论坛.
She said: 鈥It鈥檚 made a big difference, I鈥檓 housed somewhere different, I鈥檝e got support all around me and I wanted to change.
鈥I didn鈥檛 want that life anymore and with the support it鈥檚 made a big difference, I鈥檓 done now, I want to be different from how I used to be.鈥
Kayley also wants to train as a counsellor, she wants to use her experiences to help others like her.
She said: 鈥I want to help people who are like me, or who are in situations like mine was.
鈥It makes a big difference, to be heard by someone that knows what you鈥檙e going through.
鈥People want to change, but don鈥檛 always know how, or have someone who understands what it is like, that鈥檚 why I want to help people, and to help people who want help.鈥
In total I鈥檝e been to prison about six times. A couple of other times when I鈥檝e struggled to find somewhere to live I have had to sleep rough after release. I鈥檝e also stayed in a tent for a few nights. It were horrible, it were summer but it were still cold, it were freezing. I felt like I had no purpose. I were getting up just to walk round all day, and the days felt like forever. I didn鈥檛 know what to do.
Some people actually feel prison is a better alternative聽and do go back to committing crime, and to be honest I did too. I wanted to come back to prison otherwise I would have ended up in a worse situation. I needed prison because I was taking drugs and sofa surfing and I were committing crimes and it could鈥檝e ended up a lot more serious. I ended up getting arrested because I wanted to, and I told court that I didn鈥檛 want to be released until I had got myself sorted out, I told them I need prison support.
Some people do better in prison than they do outside. And that鈥檚 been me in some cases, most cases. I do well in prison, have a good record in prison and then out here it鈥檚 a completely different story. It鈥檚 weird, in prison you get a job and a routine and then out here you can鈥檛 get a job, you can see why people stay in prison.
If I hadn鈥檛 had been a stronger person and without the support of 澳门王中王论坛 this time round, I would have been back in prison by now, definitely, especially as they released me early, I would have gone straight back to stealing to take drugs.
I was terrified to leave prison聽because I was being forced to go to an Approved Premises (AP) where聽I would have to share a bathroom, kitchen and utensils, and other communal spaces with strangers, drug users and alcoholics. I was released during the pandemic, so the fear of people not social distancing felt like the ultimate punishment could be death.
At the AP I was given a聽dirty room,聽an induction pack to sign for, and聽left alone. The toilets were full of聽human excrement聽and I found a聽dead rat in a bucket; no one was interested in helping. I was the most stressed I have ever been and I just didn鈥檛 know what to do.
No one at the AP knew how to get in touch with my doctor, community mental health team or my 澳门王中王论坛 worker, it was all left to me and I just didn鈥檛 know where to start.
I was given a letter from the hostel with no explanation. I later got my dad to read it to me as I can not read or write. It was an immediate bed withdrawal notice. The hostel would not discuss this with us and threatened to have me arrested if I did not go away from the window. My 澳门王中王论坛 worker called them but the manager of the AP was busy and so they said they could not do anything.
The next day the police came at 6am and聽arrested me.
Release from prison is not always good, or something to celebrate for most people. It is absolutely terrifying, especially for those that are being released as homeless and not knowing where to go, how you will get money or benefits, IF or WHEN you will next eat or shower.
I struggled with my mental health and addiction, so I was in and out of prison a few times. Each time I never had a house, so I slept in all sorts of places, the local park, abandoned buildings, wherever I could find. Always the same, a few nights out, maybe clean, then it gets overwhelming, and I would find a way of getting myself back in prison, as bad as it was, at least I had support and a bed. Until I got housed, last time I left prison 澳门王中王论坛 had a place ready for me to go to, and mental health support in place. It has made all the difference in the world.