Category: News Posts
-
The Oswin Project Wins Education Award at Scottish Power Foundation Awards 2025
We’re pleased to announce that the Oswin Project won the Education Award at the ScottishPower Foundation Awards last night in Glasgow. The Award We were shortlisted alongside other charities doing important work in education. Being selected as the winner from such a strong field is encouraging recognition of our team’s efforts over the past year.…
-
Why the Latest Prison Statistics Should Be a Wake-Up Call for Rehabilitation Services
The Institute for Government’s Performance Tracker 2025 has landed, and for those of us working in prisoner rehabilitation, it makes for sobering reading. Not because the findings are surprising – we see these challenges every day in our work – but because the data starkly confirms what we’ve been saying for years: you cannot rehabilitate…
-
Mixed Progress: Our Response to the Sentencing Bill 2025
The government’s new Sentencing Bill represents a significant shift in criminal justice policy, with measures that will directly impact the lives of people in prison and those with criminal records. As an organisation that supports these communities, we see both encouraging developments and concerning gaps. Welcome Changes Presumption to suspend short sentences: The presumption against…
-
The Prison Capacity Crisis: A Wake-Up Call for Justice Reform
Dame Anne Owers’ comprehensive review of the 2022-24 prison capacity crisis reveals a system repeatedly pushed to the brink of collapse. Her findings should concern us all. The stark reality is that the criminal justice system came within days of total breakdown multiple times, with officials working 5:30am-midnight shifts just to keep the system functioning,…
-
The North East Needs More Support: New MoJ Data Confirms What We See Daily
As a North East charity working directly with people in prison and those who have been released, the latest Ministry of Justice employment statistics hit close to home. They confirm the challenges we face every day. The North East is lowest across all employment measures with just 13.0% in employment at 6 weeks post-release and…
-
Changing Perceptions in Leicester
Powerful conversations at Leicester University this week. Some of our team had the privilege of speaking to a large group of young people at a magistrate-run event, sharing real experiences of life inside prison. The questions came thick and fast – from the reality of prison food to the challenge of maintaining family relationships while…
-
The Prison Crisis: Why Building More Jails Won’t Fix Our Broken System
The Justice Secretary’s announcement this week that prisons are 99% full and will run out of space entirely by November should serve as a wake-up call. Shabana Mahmood’s proposed solutions; 28-day recall limits and £4.7 billion for three new prisons reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of the crisis we face. The government admits that even with…
-
Thank You Morpeth!
What an incredible year it’s been as the Mayor of Morpeth’s chosen charity! As our time as the Mayor’s charity comes to an end, we’re overwhelmed with gratitude for the amazing support our community has shown, and the very generous cheque we were presented with on Wednesday night. From brain-teasing Quiz nights to Curry evenings,…
-
The Four Pillars of Not Reoffending: A Framework for Lasting Change
At The Oswin Project, we understand that the journey from incarceration to successful reintegration is complex and multifaceted. Through our years of experience working with formerly incarcerated individuals, we’ve identified four essential pillars that form the foundation of lasting change and significantly reduce the likelihood of reoffending. 1. Stable Housing The importance of secure, stable…
-
UK Prison System in Crisis: Parliament Report Reveals Serious Capacity Issues
The UK prison system is facing a significant crisis according to a recent report from Parliament’s Committee of Public Accounts. Released in March 2025, the fifteenth report of the 2024-25 session entitled “Prison estate capacity” paints a concerning picture of overcrowding, delayed expansion plans, and deteriorating conditions that are affecting both prisoner rehabilitation and value…
