Give prisoners jobs to transform society, says Sodexo social impact leader
By Sarah Stone
Published across local news outlets - July 2025
Podcast hears benefits of hiring ex-offenders
One of Britain’s largest catering businesses has urged others to join them in hiring more prisoners.
Sodexo, which employs more than 30,000 people across the UK and Ireland, said providing opportunities to ex-offenders was economically beneficial and helped tackle a number of societal problems.🎙️ Related Content:
The company’s director of social impact, Angela Halliday, told a podcast that more than 100 employees were recruited from prisons last year.
TwoShe added that she recently produced a guaranteed interview scheme for prison-leavers who meet job specifications.
And speaking to the Let’s Talk Social Value podcast, hosted by social value agency Samtaler, she set out a number of reasons why others should do the same.
She said prisoners could “be potential Richard Bransons” and represented an enormous untapped talent pool.
And while all necessary security checks are always carried out, she said the successful integration of former offenders to the workplace helps communities, contributes to reducing reoffending rates and could ease the country’s benefits bill.
Angela Halliday, director of social impact for Sodexo, said:
“The talent pool out there that isn’t tapped into is mind-blowing. We’re taking a leap forward and encouraging others to do it too.
“We should see the person, not the journey to where they are now.
“In terms of social inclusion, we have put together toolkits to help other employers consider recruiting from the talent pool that sits within our prisons across the UK.
“By doing this, we have absolutely increased the number and diversity of our workforce across multiple sectors.
“You can think of them not as prisoners, but as potential Richard Bransons because they have skills to give back.
“All necessary security checks are undertaken as part of the process to enable prison leavers to secure employment.
“But because someone’s made the wrong decision at some point in their life doesn’t mean we’ve got to make the wrong decision by not giving them another opportunity.
“And it’s not just about the lives of those who have been in prison – it’s about their family and their local community.
“So when you talk about measuring social return it’s a no-brainer that by preventing someone from reoffending and going back into prison by giving them a job, the cost reduction to society whether that’s through crime rates or benefits is tangible.”
Sarah Stone, director of Samtaler, said:
“Social value comes in many forms and people often think of it as companies simply handing money over to communities for various projects.
“But it’s really effective when it comes in the form of people.
“By providing opportunities to those who wouldn’t otherwise get them, businesses can make the most transformative contribution to communities, families and individuals, as well as benefiting themselves from widening their own recruitment efforts.”