A Fresh Brew Behind Bars: NewGround Academy at HMP Springhill

Earlier this month we had the privilege of running our latest NewGround Academy in HMP Springhill, a local prison which holds men coming towards the end of their sentence and preparing for their release.

Deep Dive Into Coffee, Careers, and Confidence

Over the four day course we took a deep dive with our latest cohort into the wonderful world of coffee.

Part of the course looks at theory, like how farming and processing affects taste and the theory behind high-end hospitality, also covering employability and running a business to ensure that even those who don’t end up in coffee still benefitted.

The other part was super hands-on, with participants dialling in, pouring shots, latte art and trying their hand at manual brews.

Real-World Experience Inside the Walls

We like to keep our courses as fresh as our coffee. So this time, we added something new:

A live coffee afternoon, where participants served free coffees to staff across the prison.  Sadly we weren’t allowed to serve fellow inmates but the event still gave trainees experience:

//Managing workflow in a busy environment
//Handling a high volume of drink orders
//Keeping customers happy under pressure

The feedback from staff? Incredible. They were buzzing (literally and figuratively) about both the service and the coffee quality.

Life After the Course: Jobs That Break the Cycle

The goal now is to help each graduate from the course who is looking for work to land a role in a coffee shop if they’re interested.

Finding a job with the security of regular income is huge in breaking the cycle of crime and reoffending when someone comes out of prison, with prison-leavers employed six weeks after their release half as likely to reoffend as those out of work.

Looking Ahead

After helping one of the graduates from our previous NewGround Academy land a barista job a few weeks before this course began, we’re now excited to seeing where this new cohort ends up!