STEP2LAB: Systematic Transition from Prison into the Labour Market

"<< Background >>Recidivism, or the relapse into criminal behaviour, remains a significant issue in Europe, with rates reaching up to 59% in some countries (Fazel & Wolf, 2015). Former inmates face a higher risk of reoffending, contributing to societal crime and violence (Anderson & Skardhamar, 2014). Research highlights the benefits of prison work in aiding reintegration and reducing recidivism (Alós et al., 2014), but it must focus on developing relevant skills for industries with labour shortages (Society for Human Resource Management, 2019).The STEP2Lab project builds on these insights by targeting young inmates nearing release, prison staff, and professionals from private organisations. It provides a capacity-building package aimed at creating a sustainable prison work strategy tailored to each country's needs, including continuous improvement protocols, employer cooperation, and standardized training aligned with labour market demands. STEP2Lab addresses barriers like bureaucracy, hostile environments, and lack of regulations (Cané, 2016), while also filling the gap in vocational programs, helping align inmate training with industrial needs and promoting successful reintegration and industrial productivity.<< Objectives >>The project’s objectives included: 1. A replicable process to enhance prison services and private industries’ collaboration to create and implement effective procedures for inmates’ employment. 2. A model of guidance, training and insertion (GTI) based on a collaborative approach between prison services and private industries, which would enhance the development of the career plan; the model included continuous learning, job qualification and employers’ preparation for the recruitment of inmates after release, tested with 36 inmates per participant country. 3. An induction training standard to be provided to inmates’ willing to acquire new competencies necessary to be employed in a specific economy industry and testing it with 36 inmates per participant country; and4. A training of trainer’s course on setting up and managing STEP2LAB processes and models, deliverable to prison and private industries staff. << Implementation >>The structure of the STEP2LAB project was based on three different groups of activities: - Transversal activities, which accompanied the life of the project and ensured its management, dissemination and evaluation; - R&D activities, which ensured the coherent development of the proposed solutions in line with needs and international experience (Outcome 1, Outcome 2, Outcome 3); - Piloting, implementation and integration activities, which ensured the suitability and sustainability of the proposed solutions over time (Outcome 1, Outcome 2, Outcome 3 and Outcome 4). Below there is a description of each project outcome.Project Result 1. Handbook: Model of Guidance, Training, and Insertion (GTI) into the Labour Market.The 'Model of Guidance, Training and Insertion (GTI) into the Labour Market Manual' aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how vocational education and training (VET) programmes can help reintegrate prisoners into the labour market. It provides guidelines and practical examples to increase the effectiveness of training and work integration initiatives in European Union (EU) prison systems and is divided into three main chapters, each focusing on different critical components of the GTI process.The handbook is aimed at employers, industry professionals and private companies, as well as policymakers, who are involved in training within the prison system and, in turn, the socio-labour reintegration of individuals. Through a detailed exploration of the critical components of GTI and successful examples of VET programmes, including the STEP2LAB Computer-Aided Design (CAD) Induction Course, the handbook aimed to contribute to more effective and transformative training initiatives for prisoners, ultimately facilitating their transition back into the labour market and society.Project Result 2. Training: Private industry induction training for inmates. The first axis for a GTI process is guidance, but the second and most critical one is the training. This project reviewed how prison services and private organisations work together when setting up candidates to enter specific industries. Afterwards, it designed an induction training for a new career path, using the industry of moulds. It sought to provide inmates with essential competencies, enabling them to access job opportunities and motivate them to invest in a career path. Project Result 3. Catalogue: Integration Case Studies. Each GTI process implementation was followed by the evaluation and quality analysis tools. The application of these tools allowed the project partners to create the inmate’s induction reports. These GTI reports, especially those regarding pilot actions (work-based component) implementation, assured the quality of results and impact. Some GTI processes were selected and presented in a catalogue to work as promotion and best practices to other industries and within the same industry in different geographic areas.Project Result 4. Training: Train the trainers. The training the trainer activity tutored trainers on the guidelines, framework, and workflow of the GTI cooperation process. This capacity-building course was vital to help internalize and mainstream GTI processes and facilitate industry engagement.<< Results >>STEP2LAB promoted competencies for a specific target group: adults and organisations involved in Prison Work, either from prison administrations or from specific private industries in need of manpower. Plus, the targeted adult learners included: - Inmates; - Prison staff; - Professionals working in private organisations and civil society organisations. STEP2LAB aimed to address the needs of these target groups by providing a capacity-building package to both prison services and private industries in terms of setting effective prison work strategies and configuring a model suitable to each country's needs. The project results were developed sequentially and included a set of activities structured to create the innovation process. The list of outcomes is presented below: •GTI Manual (PR1)•Report on the pilot (PR1)•Course Curricula (PR2)•Induction Courses Review (PR2)•Report on the pilot (PR2)•Catalogue: Integration of case studies (PR3)•Course Curricula (PR4)•Report on the ""Embed the manual into annual training"" (PR4)•Report on the pilot (PR4)PR1 | The pilot phase of the STEP2LAB project was conducted across diverse settings in France, Italy, Portugal, and Romania. To follow is a comprehensive overview of the delivery approach.In France, Greta du Velay presented the project to five inmates, exploring national training and work opportunities within the prison system. In Italy, the pilot unfolded at the IRFIP facility in Pietramontecorvino, involving 14 students enrolled in professional training and education courses. Given that IRFIP is not a prison establishment, the pilot questionnaire was adapted to the specific context of the target group, focusing on students' awareness of training opportunities and their perspectives on the STEP2LAB course contents.Portugal's pilot session unfolded at Leiria Juvenile Prison, primarily housing young male offenders aged 16-21. The pilot was led by CENTIMFE, addressing 14 inmates, and emphasising education and professional training. Feedback from inmates on the pilot session is documented in the report.Romania's pilot implementation occurred at Mioveni Penitentiary engaging 27 inmates in the E1, E2, and E4 holding sections under a semi-open regime. The pilot offered a tailored approach for individuals deprived of their liberty. The report incorporates feedback from inmates, providing valuable insights into the Romanian context.PR2 |The objective of the ""Private industries induction training for inmates"" is to analyse the framework of how prison services and private organisations work together when setting up candidates to be introduced to specific industries. The training took place in face-to-face sessions, which were conducted in the partner countries. During the training, data was systematically gathered to improve the course content and assess its effectiveness, following IPS guidelines. Partners organised these sessions, reporting their experiences afterwards.PR3| Based on the information of the catalogue, partners of each country organised sessions to present it to companies and enterprise associations within various industries. Globally, partners organised 6 face-to-face pilots for a total of 33 stakeholders involved (5 stakeholders in Italy, 5 stakeholders in Germany, 5 stakeholders in Romania, 5 stakeholders in France, 7 stakeholders in Portugal, and 6 stakeholders in Spain.PR4| IPS drafted detailed communication materials, and each partner sent personalised emails to prison services across the EU, including Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, and Romania. After sending the emails, the partnership waited, anticipating feedback from the various prison services. The training of the ToT took place in asynchronous online learning, with face-to-face feedback sessions, which were conducted nationally in the partner countries. The self-paced e-learning component allows learners autonomy in accessing course materials and managing their study time, providing flexibility to learn from anywhere at any time. The coaching sessions, held in each consortium country (Portugal, Italy, Romania, France, Germany, and Spain), followed IPS' guidelines. Partners organised one session, closer to the participant’s completion of the e-learning portion, focused on taking any questions regarding content and receiving more thorough feedback, reporting their experiences afterwards."