Could they solve the skills shortage?
Finding and keeping skilled staff has been a thorn in the side of the industry for as long as most of us care to remember. Demographic changes on the horizon aren't going to help either. By 2020, there'll be even fewer school-leavers than now, so hospitality employers will have to explore other sources of recruitment.
Of course, the industry can source staff from abroad, not just from the European Union, where they have the same problems as us, but from further afield. It is already doing this, but there can be problems - language difficulties and lack of relevant experience or qualifications.
The Government's immigration website also states that the hospitality industry is NOT in urgent need of staff, so workers face restrictions on the time they are allowed to work here and have difficulties renewing visas.
Closer to home, there is a pool of workers who are well-qualified, experienced and eager to work. Who are they? Ex-offenders.
Last month Caterer went to High Down prison in Sutton, Surrey, to find out more about training prisoners for life after release. Visiting a prison is a bit like going to an airport. You have to bring your passport and pass through an x-ray machine with your belongings. And if you're arriving to do a stretch, you also get strip searched, just like at customs. Coincidentally, that's how many inmates end up in High Down in the first place. Because of the prison's proximity to Gatwick airport, about 200 out of the total population of 750 are inside for transporting drugs into the UK.
Luckily we're clean, and not intending to stay too long. We're here to have lunch, but not just any old lunch. A group of us, including Nigel Grayson from Compass and Heather Ewart of the Prisoners' Education Trust, has been invited for a gourmet feast specially cooked by qualified prisoners.
The prison service has run NVQ training programmes in manual jobs for some time, but our shrinking manufacturing base plus the explosion of service jobs has led to a greater emphasis on catering courses in recent years.
Numerous prisons run NVQs in professional catering. At High Down inmates are even trained up to level 3. Catering manager Alberto Crisci explains: "Our programmes are taught in the same professional kitchen where our trainees cook for prisoners and staff all year round. Our menus change weekly and we often introduce new dishes according to seasonality. On top of the NVQs 2 and 3, we also teach a hygiene certificate and key skills in English and numeracy."
But Crisci hasn't stopped there. He realised that just giving prisoners certificates wasn't necessarily enough to help them after release, so he came up with "Gourmet Lunch for Jobs", a series of lunches designed to build bridges with major hospitality employers and publicise the availability of his skilled workforce.
Last year a guest journalist from the Daily Telegraph compared his meal of battered courgette flowers, Thai monkfish, and Chianti-poached figs with the fare served up at his favourite Michelin-starred Mayfair restaurant. The Guardian said: "The meals here are about the best anywhere." Crisci's budget is small - £3,000 to pay for 18 prisoners' books and enrolment costs. Not surprisingly, preparation of the gourmet lunches has contributed to Crisci overspending by £1,200 this year.
We were invited to High Down's sixth gourmet lunch and the meal we had was abundant, ambitious, and delicious (see menu.) On top of their regular day's work of cooking lunch and dinner for 750, the 18 trainees/prisoners cooked and served the four-course lunch. This included three prisoners training for NVQ level 3 who acted as supervisors.
Crisci, who has run catering at High Down for 10 years, clearly understands the importance of marketing the skills of his brigade to the outside world. Yet changing employer's attitudes to ex-offenders is a mammoth task.
Research by crime prevention charity Nacro says that up to 90% of ex-offenders can't get an interview. This goes some way to explaining why half of released prisoners end up back inside, a depressing statistic whatever way you look at it.
Understandably employers are wary about hiring ex-prisoners. Why take the risk? Crisci is realistic about this. "There is a stigma to being in prison and there always will be," he says. But he believes that many employers have misconceptions about what goes on in prisons, and says ex-offenders should be considered for employment on a case-by-case basis.
"People offend for many different reasons. It could be circumstances, bad company, or just a wrong turn in their lives. But, when sent to prison, there's an opportunity for rehabilitation that must be allowed for," he continues.
Crisci's message is getting through to some employers. A guest at our table, Semsettin Zihni, completed his NVQs at High Down while serving a seven-year sentence for "drug supply". This January he was moved to a resettlement prison, Latchmere House, in Richmond, Surrey, to serve the rest of his sentence.
Zihni is employed by Compass. Every day he goes to work as a chef in the staff restaurant of a large supermarket, then returns to the prison to sleep.
Zihni, who got married while inside, is a positive role model. Old friends in High Down's kitchen are happy to see him again, and there's plenty of laughter and backslapping. "I think I can be different from what I was before," he says. "When you move to Latchmere, you have to find a job within two weeks as a condition of staying there. I went to the JobCentre and looked at about four jobs. Other inmates were working for Compass and told me about it. Pay is £7.30 an hour."
Crisci says Zihni changed considerably during his two years at High Down: "He's taken a genuine pride and interest in catering, which he probably never would have if he hadn't been to prison."
So what's the procedure for employing ex-offenders? Crisci stresses that the incentive to work has to come from the ex-offender. "They have to pass an interview. We are not asking anyone just to give them a job."
Before getting to the interview stage, with the permission of the prisoner, the employer gets access to his or her prison records - the offence, any pre-convictions, training and rehabilitation programmes taken, such as drug counselling or anger management. This helps the employer make a risk assessment.
Compass's decision to give some ex-offenders jobs makes sense given that it already employs prisoners on the inside. Compass runs the catering service at 28 of England and Wales's 132 prisons.
The prison service can only do so much, and Crisci is not able to track all his trainees after release, but he intends to build on his relationship with Compass. He says: "If I could get six or seven of my trainees into jobs a year, I'd be happy."
We Want to hear from you
What do you think about employing ex-prisoners? Have you ever done it, or would you consider it? Do you work at a prison that runs catering courses and have a story to tell? Write to: benjamin.walker@rbi.co.uk
Ex-prisoners in the kitchen Mention the words "prison" or "ex-offender" to most employers and they can't get off the phone fast enough. The overwhelming majority of hospitality firms we contacted were unwilling to talk about employing ex-offenders. Most declined to comment or even offer an opinion. But there were a few exceptions.
Martin Hinchliffe, HR director at Welcome Break, said: "Although we don't set out to target recruitment of one particular group, we do give equal consideration to all and we have successfully employed ex-offenders in the past. Making the most of people's skills, regardless of background, makes sound business sense, and it is potentially a solution to long-term recruitment difficulties for the industry."
And the Grand Hotel in Brighton is one example of how a local employer can work successfully with the prison service to rehabilitate prisoners. An ex-prisoner, who served a 12-year sentence for murder, has now worked at the hotel for five years and is a full-time chef.
Peter Maskens, HR manager, said: "We were contacted by the local open prison to see if we'd be interested in taking on ex-offenders. After meeting with the prison service several times, and being very impressed with the supervision and control of its programme, we felt confident enough to go ahead. This particular person had actually worked as a chef before so he did have a level of experience. For the first six months, he came in for one day a week, then two, then after a year we stepped it up to three days, and he's now a full-time member of staff. Personally, I was very conscious of the risks - after all, a kitchen isn't the first place I'd have thought of for a murderer - but the prison staff worked very hard to make us feel comfortable. For us, we were honest with other members of staff about this person, and fortunately he was very happy to be upfront about his background."
The three largest contract catering companies - Compass, Sodexho, and Aramark - have links with the prison service. Since November 2003 Sodexho has sponsored catering training at Huntercombe Young Offenders Institute.
The centre provides training to NVQ level 1. Initially the young inmates, all under 18, undergo a four-week induction programme in the kitchen to assess their attitude and aptitude. If catering is really what they want to do, they have a final interview and, if suitable, register for the programme. Sodexho is involved throughout the process.
One ex-offender who attained the NVQ level 1 was accepted to work on a day-release programme in one of Sodexho's units. He left Huntercombe this summer and now works full-time for Sodexho and is studying NVQ level 2. At present Sodexho has employed two ex-offenders from Huntercombe, with six due to complete NVQ level 1 in the coming year.
Additional reporting by Emma Allen
What we ate… The Sixth Gourmet Lunch for Jobs, High Down Prison, Surrey
Starters
Caramelised goats' cheese with endives, chicory and peaches, served with honey vinaigrette (2)
Warm Parmesan tartlet with tomato salsa and pan-fried aubergine, with a red pepper sauce
Fish courses
Roasted turbot with baby spinach and a sauce of lemons, olives and capers (1)
Sea trout with broad beans and pancetta, served with warm roasted tomato vinaigrette
Main courses
Fillet of beef and chargrilled polenta, with plum and prune compote and Madeira jus
Breast of duck with a red onion roulade and a mango and green pepper salsa
Sardinian pasta parcels with butternut squash and ricotta cheese, dressed with basil oil
Desserts
Warm chocolate pudding with sugared strawberries and aromatic créme fraîche (3)
Fresh pineapple and coconut créme brûlée
Contacts
Alberto Crisci Catering Services Manager, HMP High Down, High Down Lane, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5PJ
Tel: 020 8722 6523
E-mail:al.crisci@hmps.gsi.gov.uk
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has published advice and guidance for employers about recruiting ex-offenders. It ran a year-long campaign among its members to make the business case to employers for employing former inmates.
CIPD House, Camp Road, London SW19 4UXwww.cipd.co.uk
Business in the Community (BITC) has organised a number of "seeing is believing" visits to prisons. It recently held a seminar at Wymott prison to encourage businesses to get involved in the resettlement of prisoners.
BITC, 137 Shepherdess Walk, London N1 7RQ
Tel: 0870 600 2482;
www.bitc.org.uk
The Inside Out Trust, a national voluntary organisation, is organising seminars for employers with the aim of persuading them to consider employing ex-offenders. It highlights the benefits of employing ex-offenders and addresses the concerns that they might have.
Inside Out Trust
Hilton House, 55-57a High Street, Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex, BN6 9TT
Tel: 01273 833050
www.inside-out.org.uk
