Employment support at HMP Doncaster

A former learner at HMP Doncaster successfully gained a place on a rail track course thanks to the support he received from Novus Works and Clara, the Novus employment and resettlement coordinator at HMP Doncaster.

Providing employment support to learners 

Clara first met the former learner at a job club run by Novus Works and DWP. He was due for release in December where Clara and the learner spoke about his options and the employment routes available in his area. The former learner had seen one of the Novus Works adverts on the job board for the railway course, and asked Clara about the potential opening, who informed him of the criteria, which he met. 

Clara and the learner, then discussed potential barriers that could be sorted out whilst in custody such as ID and referred him to the relevant people for the next few weeks until his release.

However, the learner was from Sheffield and when enquiring about the railway course, Clara was informed that they didn’t have any funding in Sheffield until October 2025 but there were other areas that offered the course. Once the learner found out, he was willing to travel for the course and decided to join the railway course in Doncaster beginning in March as the January course was full. 

Clara informed DWP that the learner would need support with travel, as he would need to get a train to and from Doncaster as well as a bus to the train station. After weighing up the different options, the learner was asked if it would be better for him to be given a bike, if so, Clara could ask the prison about a potential donation which the learner was enthusiastic about. The prison agreed and the former learner was able to go and pick up the bike from HMP Doncaster, a week before his course begun and can now get to and from the train station with his new bike. 

He is currently still attending the railway course which comes with a sponsor at the end so the former learner will be given guaranteed work after becoming qualified. 

Thanks to the help he received from Novus Works and Clara, the learner was not only able to find further training and employment opportunities upon release but was also given the tools needed to travel to and from the training course in Doncaster. By supporting learners in the build up to their release and after, both learners and the Novus teams involved are able to break down any potential barriers to employment for learners, helping them to find long-term employment and become successfully rehabilitated. 

To learn more about how we support learners into employment, take a look at the news section.