SIMON BLOCKLEY, CEO OF IMPELLAM GROUP, GLOBAL MANAGED SERVICES APPOINTED EMPLOYMENT ADVISORY BOARD CHAIR FOR CHELMSFORD PRISION

Business leader Blockley to steer employment strategy, help get prisoners job ready and encourage local businesses to engage with the prison.



London, May 09th, 2023 Impellam Group has today announced the appointment of its CEO of Global Managed Services, Simon Blockley as Employment Advisory Chair of His Majesty's Prison (HMP) and Young Offenders Institute (YOI) Chelmsford.



Blockley’s appointment is part of a wider UK government New Futures Network initiative, designed to create 91 Employment Advisory Boards (EABs), to connect employers with resettlement prisons. Spearheaded by James Timpson through the Timpson Foundation, each Board has appointed a local business expert to act as Chair, as well as offer advice and guide prisons on the local employment landscape.



Simon Blockley is an ideal candidate for this employment advisory role. He is a recognised staffing industry leader and has appeared on SIA’s Staffing 100 Europe list, which recognises outstanding contribution to take the recruitment industry forward, for six consecutive years. He is Chief Executive Officer of Impellam’s Global Managed Services portfolio, which includes the Guidant Global, Comensura and Flexy brands and provides a diverse range of digitally enabled, multidisciplinary workforce solutions to organisations around the world.



An Essex-born native, Blockley who resides in Ingatestone, just 10 minutes’ drive from Chelmsford, jumped at the chance to support his local community by chairing the prison’s Employment Advisory Board. Speaking of his appointment, Blockley comments:



“At Impellam, we believe in the power of work. Through the power of work, we build better businesses and help people lead more fulfilling lives. I am extremely proud to work for an organisation that is committed to driving social value in the communities we serve. In my new role as EAB Chair, I will spearhead the campaign to get Chelmsford’s prison leavers into stable jobs so they can break the cycle of crime.



Prison Employment Advisory Boards, play a vital role in our society and economy because prison leavers with a job are much less likely to reoffend. They are crucial in tackling the £18 billion cost of reoffending, cutting crime and boosting public protection, as ex-offenders in steady jobs within 6 months of leaving prison are nine percentage points less likely to commit further crime. I’m looking forward to the challenge and to acting as a link between Chelmsford prison and employers in the region.”



Garry Newnes, Governor of HMP Chelmsford since 2021, is also pleased to have Simon Blockley on board and looks forward to expanding links with a vibrant business network:



“Having someone with Simon’s background and expertise in the employment sector on-board is a real boost to the prison. We need more employers to be open-minded when it comes to hiring ex-offenders. Surveys have shown that employers believe the ex-offenders they employ are “motivated, reliable, good at their jobs and trustworthy, with over 80% of employers of ex-offenders having positively rated their reliability, motivation, attendance, and performance”. Despite this positive endorsement, negative stereotypes of ex-offenders prevail, and we need to proactively change these perceptions to help match more serving and former prisons with suitable jobs. I am confident that the Employment Advisory Board, led by Simon Blockley will open more doors and create exciting opportunities for partnership within the business community.”



One of the first initiatives Blockley will oversee, in collaboration with Rebecca Coughlan, Prison Employment Lead at Chelmsford Prison is an Employer Engagement Event, taking place on May 11th to help create links between HMP Chelmsford and the local business community to provide a better future for ex-offenders. To find out more and register please visit: https://forms.office.com/e/pCBf3AwMqC



Impellam Group’s support for the prison Employment Advisory Board initiative and local communities is further evidenced by the involvement of two additional senior executives. Hoa Ngo, Managing Director of Comensura UK is Chair of the EAB for HMP and YOI Drake Hall, a progressive resettlement prison that promotes a culture of hope and aspiration to the women it serves, while Joscelin Conrad, Impellam’s Group Director of Investments & Innovation is a Board Advisor at Downview Women’s Prison and Young Offender Institution in Surrey.



ENDS


Press contact
Vickie Collinge
vickie@bluesky-pr.com
01582 790 705

About Impellam Group



Impellam is a connected group providing global workforce and specialist recruitment solutions. Our 2000 people and market leading brands work across a broad spectrum of industries and job categories throughout North America, the UK and Europe and APAC.

Our award-winning Global Managed Services provide a diverse range of digitally enabled, multi-disciplinary workforce solutions to organisations around the world. We are upper quadrant industry leaders in Managed Service Provision and Services Procurement, and the seventh largest Managed Service Provider in the world with over £4bn SUM (Spend under Management).

Our STEM businesses are specialists in recruiting and engaging talent in the key growth markets of technology, digital, data, science, clinical and engineering and work with clients across all sectors and sizes delivering services that span Managed Services (MSP), Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), Statement of Work (SOW) and specialist recruitment. Led by our Virtuosos, our capabilities are underpinned by our proprietary digital technology and unique partnerships with market leading software providers, enabling us to transform and future-proof our services.

We believe in the power of work. Through the power of work, we build better businesses and help people lead more fulfilling lives.

For more information about Impellam Group please visit: www.impellam.com