This latest PeN project blog is from an interview with a LandWorks graduate carried out recently as part of the Reimagining Rehabilitation and Resettlement research currently being undertaken at LandWorks.
“I was a trainee at LandWorks about five years ago and since leaving I became a Peer Support worker for the NHS, and then I progressed on to become a Support Time Recovery worker.
[What is LW trying to achieve] I’ve always just got the vibe to make people productive members of society again. Everyone’s a winner then aren’t they.
[Core elements] Well it provides a safe place for people to come, where they’re not being judged, and actually it’s run by people who wanna help, and that can be very strange for people who have never experienced that at all … grown up on the estates in * and stuff, it’s like the opposite of that. Healing within the individual, I think that’s what it’s trying to achieve and a bit of belief that that person might never have had in themselves, that they can do something, they are worth something, they have a value. The things they’ve done wrong do not define them, they do not define their future, despite what everyone else will be telling them. It gives them a place to not have to suffer that.
What makes the biggest difference? Well everyone has the same sort of beliefs system. I’m not saying everyone has got the same beliefs, but everyone’s sort of got the same ethos about seeing the person and not the crime. It’s really tricky isn’t it, what makes it work? I think a big part of it is you’re allowed to mess up, you’re allowed to admit when you’re struggling and you’re not gonna get in more trouble because of that. If you’re an alcoholic and you started drinking more, you can talk about it and not get penalised for it.
I’ve actually started outlining a speech about this, about struggling. I still struggle but I’m becoming successful and it’s because I allow myself to struggle, and the people around me allow me to struggle, whereas I never had that before. I’ve listened to talks by some really successful people and they’ve come from a background where it’s ok to fail, it’s ok to mess up, whereas like people that don’t ever achieve very much, they hide their struggle because every time they admit their struggle, they’re used to getting stuff all blamed on them, it’s their own fault, but in actual fact it’s a strength to sort of … overcoming these struggles is what makes us grow and learn, but when you stop that, how can somebody naturally learn anything in any way. So I don’t know if that helps to answer your question. When I’ve got an opportunity to do like a couple of day course on public speaking, I’m thinking I might … do you know what, mostly for myself to explain things to myself … in a way of expressing it to others … it might help others confront things. I can’t remember when the course is. I haven’t booked onto it yet coz I’m so busy and I’m trying to catch up at the minute … but in a couple of months. Whether I do the course or not, I might still do a bit of public speaking. You might have to make room for me on Supporters Day.
[Biggest difference] Be honest about where you’re at, about the difficulties, coz you can’t fix them ‘til you know them, and you can’t know them unless you’re somewhere where it’s safe.
[Different from other approaches] Well I think like traditional approaches … you’ve done wrong, you have to do this to make up for it. Then it’s very easy to go I’ve paid my debt, and don’t actually look into why you got into that in the first place. This is all about the things underneath the offending, not the offence.
[Changes in people] Confidence, like massively, self-belief, hope, hope for the future and like an awakening that you don’t have to tolerate being surrounded by negative people, you can go and find better, you deserve more. I mean that’s even having a knock-on effect as well with like Jarvis and myself, like we’re out helping other people the same when we got helped, and those other people are going onto help other people.
[Make the changes last] The community, like feeling part of a community even after you’ve done the time, after you’ve moved on. A lot of people wanna come back and help supporting don’t they. I drop in every time I’m driving past. Could you ask the question again? I think it’s just the fundamental of the type of changes that are being made. They’re very small but they’re very deep down inside of people, and so like those small changes deep down inside affect every action that that person is doing, and like the thought process has changed. It’s like anything isn’t it, like a little bit every day adds up.
LandWorks works because it doesn’t give up on people. It believes in people and it helps people to believe in themselves.”
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