Erwin James, Patron of Footprints, passed away suddenly at the end of January 2024.

The whole Board, CEO, staff and other Patrons at Footprints Project join me in sending his family our deepest condolences at this terrible time. 

Erwin was an inspiration to a huge number of people and kindly came to speak at an event in Winchester some years ago which was, by far, the most articulate, compassionate, anecdotal, informative, challenging and, at times, amusing talk Footprints has held.  Most of us have read some or all of Erwin’s books and his talent at writing so eloquently makes is obvious why he was a Guardian columnist for so many years. 

One of our Patrons wrote as a response to a quote from Erwin “Hand on heart, I know that most of the people I served alongside had the desire to change and live crime-free lives”  she added "but it's a special kind of person who finds the drive and commitment to follow through. His family should be proud of him, not just for his own rehabilitation but for the help he gave others to achieve the same”.

He was a wonderful man who overcame a challenging life with great fortitude and showed the world that everyone deserves a second chance.

SJ Radford, Chair of Trustees