This year Team Drapers is raising money for Onwards & Upwards, a charity which creates initiatives providing employment to ex-offenders, the first of which is XO Bikes. They provide training inside, employment outside & pastoral support on all sides. Over 400 studies show that employment is the single most important factor in reducing reoffending rates.

Every year 48% of those leaving prison are back inside within 12 months of release. Why? Not because they want to be but because they can’t find work. Unfortunately, in order to make ends meet they fall into previous behaviours and social groups which lead to the same outcomes; prison.

This has an annual cost of £18.5 billion to the taxpayer!

Onwards & Upwards was created to show that with the right training and the stability of employment that recall to prison is not the preferred option of those leaving the criminal justice system. XO Bikes was founded in 2022 and has trained over 80 people to become bicycle mechanics, employing many and connecting with partners like Decathlon and Fettle who have hired their graduates. The second venture, XO Barbers is launching in 2025 with a training salon being installed in HMP Brixton as we speak.

The talent, passion and motivation of prison leavers is an untapped resource. Too often HR departments are quick to dismiss those with criminal records and this can severely limit not only the opportunity of someone seeking work but also the potential of a fantastic hire for that company. O&U wishes to change perceptions and start a bigger conversation around the rehabilitation of prison leavers, their place in society and ensuring that they stay outside of the criminal justice system.

Please help by giving any amount you can to this amazing cause. Or, if you can’t give financially, please help spread the word by passing this on to a few people.