Features / Bristol Charity Advent Calendar 2025
Bristol Charity Advent Calendar 2025, day 6: The Key Charity
While many talk about second chances, there are few people and groups who work towards making these available to people who really need them. At the Key Charity, a Bristol-based charity working with former prisoners the idea is to create pathways of support that can help them integrate back into society.
Founder, Suzanne Thompson, has three decades of experience working with people in the system, and the vision for her and the rest of the team has always been “help people rebuild their lives after they leave prison”.
On their website, the Key team said: “We want to give people the tools they need to unlock confidence, pride, and positivity.
The Key Cafe has opened within the former prison building on Gloucester Road – photo: Karen Johnson
“We want to create a safe space for personal growth and practical experience that will enable people to secure future employment, financial stability, and break the cycle of reoffending.”
With belief in the “power of second chances” at their core, the Key have now opened a cafe on Gloucester Road, fully staffed with people who have lived experiences of the justice system.
Their idea to serve “food with conviction” at the Key cafe is driven by the motive to help people find their way back into society through permanent paid employment, new skills and socialisation.
The charity’s desire to champion the voices of those with lived experiences of the justice system shines through in various ways, with the charity’s name also chosen through a focus group in prison.
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On their website, the charity team explains the value of second chances: “Many people with convictions struggle to obtain work.
“According to a government survey, just 17 per cent of ex-offenders secure a job within a year of release.
“A YouGov survey commissioned by the DWP found that 50 per cent of employers would choose not to employ ex-offenders, deeming them unskilled and untrustworthy.
“This is despite 86 per cent of companies that employ ex-offenders rating them as ‘good at their job’, and 81 per cent of consumers stating that companies who employ ex-offenders are positively contributing to society.
“The lack of stability and lack of security due to unemployment creates a cycle of reoffending and makes successful rehabilitation much more challenging. This must change, and as the statistics above illustrate, tackling this problem can be beneficial for all parties involved.”
Main photo: The Key
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