Footprints Team and Trustee with William Maltby, High Sheriff of Hamsphire
FROM THE CEO
Welcome back to The Gate, Footprint’s seasonal newsletter.
We’ve had a busy quarter, meeting the public and organisations, welcoming new staff, and preparing everything for upcoming events. Our women’s work has been included on the National Women’s Service map, we're preparing two more days for volunteer training in August and we're announcing a 21st Anniversary booklet celebrating our history and impact.
Summer is a time for growth and exploration, and we are excited about the new and developing opportunities that we are sharing with you today, including;
- Save the Date: Upcoming Events
- Fundraising and 21st Anniversary Booklet
- Our Impact: Graham’s Story
- Meeting You and the Community
- Partnership and Collaboration
- Welcoming New Staff and Expanding Roles
- National Volunteer Week and Upcoming Training
As always, we are enormously grateful for your support.
Caroline, CEO Footprints Project
Save the Date: Upcoming Events
Join us for a fun and informative evening for all
To celebrate our 21st Anniversary, we are hosting A Lifetime of Change, a talk delivered by Kate Adie at Barngrove, Greywall and sponsored by Phillips Law and the Makin Charitable Trust. Kate is a long-time supporter and patron of Footprints, and we are extremely grateful for her continued support. Tickets are limited and on sale for £50 per person now.
Find details of them on our website.
Barnsgrove club house, copyright @barnsgroveclubhouse
In 2027, Jung Chang CBE will give a talk to be held in Dorset. Best known for her autobiography, Wild Swans, Jung is a bestselling author worldwide. The date will be confirmed soon.
Details for tickets for both events will be posted on the website closer to the dates. For more information, visit our website and follow us on social media.
New announcement: We're heading to the Winchester Cathedral Christmas Market on the 25th of November 2026. Pop by to get your Christmas gifts while supporting us, our mission and the people who will help change their lives. There will be handmade art, jewellery, shirts, bags, and more, as well as bookmarks and Christmas cards designed from Second Chances' artwork, made by vulnerable women in Boscombe. Hope to see you there.
Prison Coordinator Stuart at Winchester Christmas Market 2021
Fundraising and 21st Anniversary Booklet
We know this is a challenging time for everyone, so we want to thank you, and the Trusts, corporations and funders who have continued to support us.
We are grateful to have received £5,000 from the John Langham Foundation and £5,000 from the Schroder Charitable Trust to help us develop our employment and skills support for young offenders. We need around £20,000 a month to keep our services going, and need to secure a further £130,000 this year.
Get Your Copy Now! Just £5 with a £2.50 shipping cost.
To celebrate 21 years of supporting people with experience in the Criminal Justice System and to secure our future, we have developed a booklet that retells the Footprints Project's history. It showcases all our projects, people, and supporters who have changed lives in Dorset and Hampshire, and tells the stories of those who needed our help. The booklet is available for preorder now on our website and will be sent out after the launch on 15th of October at Kate Adie's A Lifetime of Change.
21 Years of Changing Lives Sneak Peak
Footprints has applied to be part of the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2026. We are expanding our Second Chances therapeutic art group to include a dedicated training, employment and production arm that will guide vulnerable women into economic activity while providing structured production sessions that make the items we sell at events, online and at the Shire Hall Museum. We are fundraising to hire a Development Manager who can improve our online range and retail opportunities in order to bring in higher income that can support the direct employment pathway.
We now need people to pledge to support us. The Big Give Christmas Challenge matches the fund provided by Pledgers doubling the amount received by Footprints and helping us support more people within the Criminal Justice System. Pledges can be a little as £100. If you're interested in supporting the Footprints Project, contact Caroline by the 15th of August at caroline@footprintsproject.co.uk.
Thank you for your support. If you can give more to support those who need it, follow this link to donate. 10% of our capital comes from public support. All donations, no matter how small, help us in our mission.
Our Impact: Graham's Story
Footprints supports people restarting their lives, regardless of their situation, experiences, or convictions. It’s important to support people across the Criminal Justice System, whether in prison, on probation, or in the community. They all deserve a chance to change the direction of their lives and live free of crime in their communities. Below is Graham’s* story;
*The name has been changed to protect the individual's identity.
In his early years, Graham experienced emotional, physical and sexual abuse. His parents misused drugs and alcohol, and by the time Graham was 6, he was smoking cigarettes, which progressed to harder drugs. As a teenager, he received a Detention for Public Protection (DPP), an indefinite sentence with a minimum tariff of 3 ½ years. He served more than 16 years in prison.
While in custody, Graham completed his education and gained qualifications in Maths, English, Painting and Decorating, Plastering, and Building. He accessed therapy and mental health support and was finally released in his 30s. He was moved into an Approved Premise (AP), where he attended our drop-ins and became involved in the allotment project. Keen to improve his employment prospects, he gained a forklift licence and a Level 2 Food Hygiene qualification. When his residency expired, Graham was unable to secure somewhere to live and was moved into temporary accommodation.
His search was extremely difficult as his licence restricted him from attending property viewings alone. He began to feel hopeless, but signed up for our Community Mentoring. His mentor met him, often on short notice, to attend property viewings. Within two months, Graham moved into his first ever flat. We referred him to a local charity that provided support with furniture and white goods. We also referred Graham to Re-fit, a service that provided funding for gym sessions, and he joined a cooking group, getting him out of the flat, connecting with people and improving his physical and mental wellbeing.
Graham has settled well into his new area and accommodation. He continues to attend the gym and engage with services, and recently secured work.
Bournemouth Court Open Day, Footprints team with Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, Michael Dooley
Meeting You and the Community
Footprints wouldn’t be the charity it is today without the support and engagement from the community. We are grateful for the opportunities we’ve had over the last few months to talk to you, our community and organisations across Dorset, Hampshire and the rest of the UK.
We got to meet the public, play our criminal justice snakes-and-ladders board game with the kids and showcase and sell our Second Chances’ artwork at Bournemouth Court’s Open Day. We were especially honoured to meet Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, Dr Michael Dooley LVO, FRCOG, who took the time to visit our stand and learn more about us.
We’re grateful for the invitations and opportunities to meet other organisations at the Whole Systems Approach Workshop at Cornwall’s Women’s Centre and the Corbett Network annual conference in London. It was a pleasure meeting the volunteers, colleagues and organisations that support people within the community. Thank you to Isabel Livingstone from Cornwall Women’s Centre for the invitation
Footprints at the Restorative Solutions Volunteering Event
Footprints was invited to host a presentation at the Restorative Solutions Volunteering event at Poole Lighthouse. We want to thank Jackie Wilson and Yvette Bessant for the warm welcome. It was a pleasure to talk to you all about our Out of Court Resolutions and connect with the Dorset Police Adult Out of Court team.
We had the great pleasure of meeting William Maltby, the High Sheriff of Hampshire, where we shared the work we do and the difference we make in supporting people across the community. We want to thank him for taking the time to hear about our work.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to chat, ask questions, and support our mission of encouraging self-worth, belonging and hope for those rebuilding their lives. We hope to see you next time, too.
Partnerships and Collaborations
Footprints is delighted to be added to the Women’s Services Map. Developed and launched by the National Women’s Justice Coalition, the Women’s Service Map is the UK’s first dedicated resource of women’s centres and specialists for women and girls in contact with the criminal justice system.
“The Map is designed to simplify the process of locating the women’s organisations and specialist services.”- National Women’s Justice Coalition.
We are proud to be the 2nd service added in Dorset and 4th service added in Hampshire. We want to reach as many people as possible, and this resource will help them access our services.
That is not all. Recently, we met with Adam Frend, the Director of Team Fortis CIC, a strongman/gym in Poole, to explore an exciting new partnership focused on supporting people involved in the Criminal Justice System. Team Fortis works to build people's confidence, sense of belonging, and purpose through Adlerian theory. This short-term, goal-oriented approach focuses on understanding an individual's lifestyle, social interests and feelings of belonging. Together, we're planning to deliver a collaborative project for people in the community or on Approved Premises.
Welcoming New Staff and Expanding Roles
Please join us in welcoming Zoë as the new Dorset Coordinator. Zoë has over 20 years of experience supporting people facing homelessness, trauma, financial hardship and social exclusion. Earlier in her carreer, Zoë has supported people experiencing homelessness and those within the Criminal Justice System, delivering outreach services in prison and helping people prepare for a positive return to their communities. More recently, she had been coordinating support for refugees and people seeking asylum, while also leading volunteers, developing community projects and working alongside local orgaisations to create meaningful opportunities for those in need. Zoë is passionate about bringing people together, strengthening communities and helping individuals rebuild confidence, stability and independence.
As Dorset Coordinator, Zoë is excited to meet people across the county, build new partnerships and work alongside communities to ensure more people can access the support they need to move forward. We are excited to welcome her to the team and hope for a swift handover from Stuart, who is refocusing on further development of our youth and prison work.
Zoë, Dorset Coordinator, Footprints Project
This year, we were one of 8 charities to receive funding from the Co-Op Future Community Fund, which supports young people with experience of the Criminal Justice System to re-engage with their communities. As such, we are increasing our development and work for U25s. Stuart organises lived-experience talks for young people and recently visited HMP and YOI Portland to meet with a group of young people to co-develop our approach. Stuart has also been delivering other talks, including a presentation to representatives from Drug and Alcohol Services, Healthcare and the Job centre, raising awareness of our work and highlighting the support we provide.
Stuart accompanied by our volunteers attended a Resettlement Day at HMP and YOI Portland. It was a great day, meeting individuals who could benefit from our support, while raising awareness of Footprints and our work. Our volunteers were able to gain experience in a prison setting and talk to the people who need them. The team worked to create positive pathways for people as they take their next steps in rebuilding their lives.
National Volunteers Week and Upcoming Training
We want to end this newsletter with a huge thank-you to the incredible volunteers who make our work at Footprints possible. June 1st-7th was National Volunteers’ Week, celebrating the people who silently and thanklessly give up their time to help.
“Volunteers don’t just give their time- they give people the confidence to believe that change is possible.”
Our volunteer mentors walk alongside people, offering encouragement, practical support, and a listening ear during some of life’s most challenging moments. They are hope when it’s needed most. Their support helps people move forward with confidence, self-belief, and purpose.
“My mentor is fantastic, I can’t thank you or him enough for everything that you have done for me.”- Service User
On 6th and 13th of August, we are delivering training for people wanting to be volunteer mentors at the Green House Community Hub in Portsmouth. Our volunteer training develops the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to make a real difference in the lives of people we support across our community.
Come be part of the team creating opportunities, building hope and helping people take positive steps towards brighter futures. Find information and book your slot on our website or contact info@footprintsproject.co.uk.
Thank you for reading our Summer edition of the newsletter. Keep up to date with Footprints on our website and social media.
