20 Aug 2026
Unlocking Potential is a national campaign from Inside Job Productions, in partnership with the CIPD Trust, using film and real employer stories to help change perceptions around hiring people with lived experience of the criminal justice system.
Across the UK, employers are already giving prison leavers the opportunity to build careers, contribute to teams and move forward with their lives. But misconceptions and uncertainty still stop many organisations from considering this talent.
Unlocking Potential will show what second-chance employment looks like in practice, through the voices of the employers and employees experiencing it first-hand.
And we want you to be part of it.
Why it matters
For people leaving prison, employment can be a critical step towards rebuilding their lives.
For employers, widening recruitment can mean access to skills, experience and potential that may otherwise be overlooked.
86% of employers of people with convictions rate them as good at their job.
Yet many organisations remain unsure about hiring people with convictions, whether because of perceived risk, uncertainty around recruitment processes or simply a lack of experience.
Unlocking Potential aims to make those conversations easier by sharing authentic stories from employers already doing it.
Real stories, told through film
At the heart of Unlocking Potential is a series of short documentary films featuring organisations that employ prison leavers.
Each participating employer will commission a professionally produced film telling its own story. The films will explore the experience honestly, including why the organisation decided to recruit differently, what it has learnt and the impact on both the business and the people involved.
The aim is to create content that is useful to the individual employer while building a wider body of evidence and experience that can help other organisations think differently about recruitment.
Why film?
Employment statistics can tell us a lot. Stories can make them real.
Hearing directly from an employer, a hiring manager or somebody who has rebuilt their career after prison can challenge assumptions in a way that policy alone often cannot.
Inside Job Productions brings together professional film production and lived experience. As a social enterprise, we have a long history of creating opportunities for people excluded from the labour market and producing films around complex and sensitive subjects.
Unlocking Potential uses that experience to create films that are credible, useful and engaging, rather than simply telling employers what they should do.
Become part of Unlocking Potential
We are looking for a small number of employers who already hire people with lived experience of the criminal justice system and are willing to share what they have learnt.
By taking part, your organisation can
- Commission a short documentary telling your story
- Share your experience with other employers and HR leaders
- Demonstrate your approach to inclusive recruitment and social impact
- Help challenge misconceptions around employing prison leavers
- Contribute to a wider conversation about how businesses can create fairer access to work
The campaign is deliberately focused on real experiences. We are interested in what has worked, what employers have learnt and the practical realities of making second-chance employment successful.
Building towards the CIPD Festival of Work
Unlocking Potential will develop throughout 2026 and into 2027 as employer stories are filmed and shared.
The campaign will build towards a screening and panel discussion at the CIPD Festival of Work on 9–10 June 2027, bringing these experiences directly to HR and business leaders and creating space for a wider conversation about inclusive employment.
The CIPD Trust is the campaign’s principal partner, bringing its reach and experience of supporting employers to work with prison leavers and helping to take these stories into the wider people profession.
Join the movement
If your organisation employs prison leavers and has an experience worth sharing, we would love to hear from you.
Your story could help another employer make the decision to open a door.
Contact Ann at anns@insidejobproductions.co.uk
