London’s only prison restaurant is facing an uncertain future despite its success in reducing reoffending rates
National charity The Clink opened its Brixton restaurant that specialises in afternoon tea and Sunday roasts in 2014. This week the charity submitted a bid that would allow it to remain on the site for a further five years.
Copyright – Holly Dwyer
The bid comes as the Government faces tough spending decisions and the catering industry faces rising food prices.
“Something that you paid £500 for five years ago is now two and a half grand” said Mr Simon McKinnon Brahams, the general manager of the Clink’s restaurant and bakery at HMP Brixton.
He says that although this is a regular bidding process, the charity is competing against large commercial catering companies or pub groups who have a lot of money and are able to take the hit of costs.
The Clink says their work is an important part of rehabilitating prisoners. Reoffending rates for those prisoners working at the restaurant are well below the national average. The national rate of reoffending is around 40-50%. A Ministry of Justice analysis shows just a 12–15% reoffending rate among Clink participants.
Clink graduate Nathaniel Mortley – @NattyCanCook to his nearly fifty five thousand Instagram followers – is opening a new restaurant, 2210, in Herne Hill this week. His goal is to become the first chef to get a Michelin star for his style of pan-Caribbean food.
Natty, an ambassador for the charity, served time in Brixton prison for dealing drugs. He applied for a job in the public-facing restaurant, one of the most sought-after jobs among inmates. Natty had been a chef before prison, working all over London, and this was an opportunity for him to continue doing what he loved.
Mr Brahams said Natty is an inspiration to other prisoners. “Hospitality is one of those industries where you judge people based on what they can do and not who they are or where they’ve come from.”
Mr Brahams believes The Clink works because “whilst we’re training individuals to do the job of being a waiter or a barista or a chef in the kitchen, it’s all the soft skills that they’re picking up at the same time. Things like punctuality, wearing a uniform, working as a team.”
The Clink opened its first prisoner-run restaurant in 2009 at HMP High Down in Surrey and at its height provided culinary training in 38 prisons. Brixton’s prisons restaurant is the last remaining public facing facility.
The verdict of the bid will be reached by December.
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StandfirstThe Clink charity submitted a bid to remain operating in Brixton prison amid funding crisis
London’s only prison restaurant is facing an uncertain future despite its success in reducing reoffending rates
National charity The Clink opened its Brixton restaurant that specialises in afternoon tea and Sunday roasts in 2014. This week the charity submitted a bid that would allow it to remain on the site for a further five years.
Copyright – Holly Dwyer
The bid comes as the Government faces tough spending decisions and the catering industry faces rising food prices.
“Something that you paid £500 for five years ago is now two and a half grand” said Mr Simon McKinnon Brahams, the general manager of the Clink’s restaurant and bakery at HMP Brixton.
He says that although this is a regular bidding process, the charity is competing against large commercial catering companies or pub groups who have a lot of money and are able to take the hit of costs.
The Clink says their work is an important part of rehabilitating prisoners. Reoffending rates for those prisoners working at the restaurant are well below the national average. The national rate of reoffending is around 40-50%. A Ministry of Justice analysis shows just a 12–15% reoffending rate among Clink participants.
Clink graduate Nathaniel Mortley – @NattyCanCook to his nearly fifty five thousand Instagram followers – is opening a new restaurant, 2210, in Herne Hill this week. His goal is to become the first chef to get a Michelin star for his style of pan-Caribbean food.
Natty, an ambassador for the charity, served time in Brixton prison for dealing drugs. He applied for a job in the public-facing restaurant, one of the most sought-after jobs among inmates. Natty had been a chef before prison, working all over London, and this was an opportunity for him to continue doing what he loved.
Mr Brahams said Natty is an inspiration to other prisoners. “Hospitality is one of those industries where you judge people based on what they can do and not who they are or where they’ve come from.”
Mr Brahams believes The Clink works because “whilst we’re training individuals to do the job of being a waiter or a barista or a chef in the kitchen, it’s all the soft skills that they’re picking up at the same time. Things like punctuality, wearing a uniform, working as a team.”
The Clink opened its first prisoner-run restaurant in 2009 at HMP High Down in Surrey and at its height provided culinary training in 38 prisons. Brixton’s prisons restaurant is the last remaining public facing facility.
The verdict of the bid will be reached by December.
