If you’ve got a criminal record we’d love to hear your story. Whether it inspires others through our online resources or helps us address inequalities at a policy level, your experiences are invaluable to us.
Help us to change the system
Through our policy and campaign work, we work with government departments and other organisations to address systemic and structural issues. We’re always looking to understand the challenges that people with convictions are facing. This is where we need your help, so that we can better challenge unfair policies and practices. We have a list of priorities that we’re proactively seeking personal experiences and evidence on. If you can help please get in touch via the form on this page.
Write for our Community
Your story has the power to help inspire others. The Community is a place for you to share your story, views and opinions. It’s independent, impartial and honest. If you’ve got a criminal record you can share your story by writing something for us. And of course we’ll always make sure your identity is protected. If you’d like to contribute, fill in the form below.
Guidance for Community contributors
We don’t have any strict rules on what contributions should look like, but please keep in mind the following:
- Personal details: To protect your identity, we recommend that you make sure that no personal details are included. We review all contributions before they are published, and if we think that there are any personal details, we may make edits to make sure that you cannot be identified.
- Length: There is no set word count, although articles should generally be no more than 500 words. If you think it needs to be more than that, think about splitting it down into a couple of separate pieces.
- Publication: We cannot guarantee to publish everything that we receive. However, we guarantee to consider every contribution. If we decide to publish, we may make some editorial amendments. We will always provide a draft copy for you to approve before we publish; this is to ensure that you’re happy with any edits, and to ensure that your identity is protected.
Participate in media work with us
Occasionally, we work with journalists and others to raise awareness of the barriers people with criminal records face. In order to help the general public understand the issues, it’s helpful to include the voice and story of someone with experience of the problems. If you would potentially be interested in sharing your story in the media (for example being interviewed by a journalist for a print article, or on the radio) please let us know when you fill in the form below.
We will always do our best to ensure anonymity for people who need it.
Please do not ask for advice about your criminal record through this form. If you need help with your criminal record, please contact our helpline.
Connect with others
If you’ve got a bit more time theForum gives people with convictions the opportunity to provide peer-to-peer information, advice and support to others with criminal records. Our forum is run on the principle of peer support. It’s a place for people to share their views and experiences, and also raise awareness of issues that people with criminal records are facing. It’s also a place that people go to for support. That’s why we’re always keen to encourage people with criminal records to be active contributors. Visit the forum and find out more.
