Crest Co-operative: running probation contracts for 20 years

Crest Co-operative recently won another MoJ contract to provide unpaid work supervision services. It’s something they’ve been delivering for over 20 years.

Crest Co-operative is a charity based in North Wales that run a variety of services including charity shops, a food bank, furniture upcycling through to a radio station. 

They have around 47 paid staff, between 30 and 35 regular volunteers and through the probation services provide unpaid work supervision for around 10,000 hours per annum. At any one time they might have between 20 to 30 people on the unpaid work programme. 

Managing Director Rod Williams told Work with Offenders: “We tell everyone, you're here, you're part of the team as far as we're concerned. We don't label anyone, or discriminate against anyone. 

“If you meet us halfway and show that you've got willing and you want to do well in life, then there may be opportunities here for you and what we mean by that is either voluntary or paid employment in the future […] they don't come to us with a big orange bib on saying I'm from community payback – they have the same uniform, the same induction. 

“We also have a number of local businesses that we work closely with and it's almost like a feeder club. We can recommend Joe Bloggs who has been with us last three to six months completing their hours doing volunteer work. 

“Because you've got them for three to six months you can just tell what kind of person they are, are they coming in on time, whether they're respecting people around them, their work ethic etc.” 

Mr Williams describe a lot of “good news stories” whereby people have come through on unpaid work supervision and then stayed with the organisation after, either as a volunteer or a paid employee. 

Because of the variety of branches of the organisation, those working there have a range of options depending on their skill set – roles include office based admin, shop work and repairing goods. 

Court sets out that anyone who comes through on unpaid work must complete their hours within a 12 month period. Some of those hours can be completed through training sessions which Crest also try and facilitate. 

Work with Offenders asked whether the organisation had ever had any problems with individuals. Mr Williams has been with Crest for 17 years and described only a “handful of occasions where things could have gotten out of hand”. 

Employees who have already been through the unpaid work process are encouraged to help others and there’s an internal training session given to all staff, volunteers and unpaid work supervisees on handling situations and safeguarding. 

Mr Williams explained: “It's all about talking calming the situation down taking them somewhere privately a cup of tea, and a biscuit. 

“You see whether there's anything that we can do to help out, tell them to take a day off if they’re not right for work or see a GP or social worker.

“We're not judge and jury, we’re just the place that they come to to serve their hours and while they're here, we want them to get something out of it.”

The most recent initiative Crest has taken on has been launching their own radio station. It came off the back of a local radio asking to interview them about their organisation. 

Mr Williams took a service user with him for the interview, an adult with learning difficulties who loves music. 

“When we come back in the car he asked me quite an innocent question – Why can't Crest have a radio station. That planted the seeds, I came back and we have an old archive room that was kind of gathering dust.

“We insulated the room we got out every bit of equipment that there was – pre-loved, donated to us, or or found within the shops store. And we tested it all got it running. And we had an online station within a couple of weeks.”

The local station has since approached them suggesting they get a licence from Ofcom which they have now applied for. As a result, the local college has reached out regarding their media studies class, as have local schools. 

“The third sector is very volatile. And if you don't move with the times, if you go and cap in hand looking for funding and grants left, right and centre, it's not a sustainable model. 

"The only time we'll apply for a grant or of government funding is for capacity to build a new project, which will in itself in time, be financially sustainable and stand on its own to create employment and support people,”Mr Williams said. 

“In the scheme of things Crest get paid peanuts, we do it because it's helping people in our community and we practice what we preach. Our whole mission is about unlocking people's potential through inclusion and innovation, through the enterprises that we run in our community so that, we actively invest our own surplus and profits to make these programmes work. 

“The reward we get is that sometimes we get an absolute diamond, an employee, or volunteer who helps us support the organisation.”