£5000 grant for training restaurant at Styal Prison

styalprison

Wilmslow Town Council has approved a £5000 grant application from The Clink Charity which will be opening a new restaurant at Styal Prison.

The sole aim of The Clink Training Restaurant is to reduce reoffending by providing training in a real work environment, with support before and after release for those who want and deserve a second chance.

The restaurant requires members of the public to support their work by dining with them and giving prisoners the opportunity to cook and serve. At the same time they would like to think that training the public and changing the public's perceptions of prisoners.

The charity offers prisoners the chance to gain food preparation, food service and cleaning qualifications, as well as experience within an operational business.

The Clink also places these individuals upon their release into employment in the hospitality industry, with the support of the Clink's ex-offender career mentoring scheme. As part of the programme graduates receive feedback and dedicated support from their mentor to seek full-time employment within the hospitality sector - as well as help to secure accommodation, obtain financial help, open a bank account and anything else to ease their reintegration into society.

The requested grant will be used to purchase a semi automatic traditional coffee machine that would enable the women prisoners to train on their barista skills which is part of the City & Guilds NVQ level 2 in Food and Beverage Service.

Jane Sanderson, who heads up training and operations at the charity, attended the Town Council meeting on Monday, 19th January.

She explained "We have to raise £500,000 to fit out and buy light equipment for The Clink. We've come a long way but the light equipment budget is around £80,000 and we've asked for a donation for a barista style coffee machine where you make expressos and the girls will learn how to make those type of coffees. We just wanted a specific piece of kit where we could say Wilmslow Town Council donated it, it could be the cutlery, the glassware or a mixer in the kitchen."

Additional funding is coming from 15 other grant making trusts and philanthropic individuals.

The Clink restaurant concept has provided 94 training positions at HMP Down and placed 19 Clink graduates from HMP Cardiff into employment. During 2013 they served 20,000 members of the public at both of their restaurants.

The charity aims to open The Clink Training Restaurant in the former Styal Church building in late Spring/early summer.

Tags:
Styal Prison, The Clink Charity
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Comments

Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.

Diane Atkinson
Thursday 22nd January 2015 at 10:07 am
What a brilliant idea. I wish them well.
Jon Williams
Thursday 22nd January 2015 at 10:56 am
Great idea, but the money should not come from Wilmslow Town Council
Mario West
Thursday 22nd January 2015 at 6:10 pm
Styal Prison isn't in Wilmslow Town Council's district.

http://bit.ly/1GpLB87

Why are Wilmslow tax payers being made to contribute to something outside of their area?

Not that I think this a bad idea, but does that mean that anyone can ask for a grant from the town council?
DELETED ACCOUNT
Thursday 22nd January 2015 at 8:08 pm
I'm sure that this charity, like many others, is worthwhile, but I fail to understand why our Town Council is donating money raised through the precept. There is a world of difference to giving our money to "Incredible Edible Wilmslow " and "Wilmslow in Bloom" to donating to this. The former improve the appearance of the town and educate all. This is simply a single issue charity unconnected with Wilmslow.
Oliver Romain
Thursday 22nd January 2015 at 8:40 pm
I welcome the restaurant and hope to use it. But WTC should dump its bugdet on public toilets not on charities outside of its district.
If the councillors are stuck for ideas just as the public what they want. Public toilets at the Carrs would be a start. 5K would probably cover a portaloo for 18 months.
Drew Donaldson
Friday 23rd January 2015 at 12:49 am
Guys, guys, guys you are missing the point. If you are happy with Central Government giving £11 billion per year on Overseas Development and Aid, this is just a more local example of the same principle.
Personally I welcome the move. Those who re-offend often say it is because they cannot find a job or somewhere to live. They then fall back on what they have always done. This may give them a chance to break to cycle. Good Luck.....
Simon Worthington
Friday 23rd January 2015 at 1:24 pm
The prison is not in Wilmslow. Most of the inmates are not from Wilmslow. Why is cash demanded from us handed to any charity however bright the ideas?
Drew Donaldson
Friday 23rd January 2015 at 7:36 pm
It's called the Big Society old chap. Aimed at helping those who are not so fortune or well off as us. Worth a try wouldn't you say?
Stuart Redgard
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 4:19 am
To all of the people who don't appear to support the vote taken by the councillors.

May I suggest some possible solutions to your discourse.

1) Don't vote for them on on May 7th when they are all up for re-election.

2) Stand for council yourself and if you get elected then you can make these decisions yourself.

3) Attend the meetings and participate in the public speaking session and speak for or against Grant applications

We live in a democracy. If you don't participate then please expect others who do to make decisions that you might not be content with.
DELETED ACCOUNT
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 9:47 am
Stuart - we do have a right to expect our Councillors to make decisions relevant to Wilmslow and with a degree of detachment. The Clink Restaurant Charity (very worthwhile), - but it is effectively a government initiative dressed up as a charity. Its restaurants are part funded by the Prision Service, and you will, no doubt, find that it is also given donations by a range of public bodies, including local authorities. The degree of subsidy given to these restaurants has also not been without criticism. Secondly, it is not in Wilmslow - that just happens to be the largest town nearest to it. I suspect that the reality is that they have applied for cash donations from Wilmslow, Gatley, Stockport generally, Trafford and Manchester. In other words, it is seeking cash wherever it may find it - nothing wrong with that. What is wrong is that it is not part of the community of Wilmslow. The prison and Styal as a whole lies outside the Lacey Green Ward, and outside the Wilmslow West Ward. It will be interesting to know whether the town council has acted ultra vires.
Oliver Romain
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 10:29 am
Stuart, we don't all have time to attend council meetings or stand for election. Voicing opinions on this site is part of the democratic process. This may be the only way that ordinary people get to have a say and engage in discussion on decisions made by elected officials. Such discussion should not be the sole preserve of the politically active.

With all the talk of £7K for ipads, it seems to me that WTC may need some better and more local ideas on where to spend the spare cash. I am in favour of temporary toilets for the Carrs playground. Any other ideas out there?
DELETED ACCOUNT
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 11:07 am
Oliver - definately public toilets needed and signposted where they are in Wilmslow. It is outrageous on Artisan Market Day to expect the bars and restaurants to provide this public facility.
Jon Williams
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 12:39 pm
"It's called the Big Society old chap. Aimed at helping those who are not so fortune or well off as us. Worth a try wouldn't you say? "
Drew Donaldson

I take it Drew does not try to live on the Minimum Wage then !
Stuart Redgard
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 3:36 pm
Hi all. I welcome your feedback and enjoy the discussions raised on this site. Just offering alternative suggestions. I do not intend to be offensive when making comments, but I do know that I can sometimes be aggressively assertive in discussions, so appologise if I have been over aggressive.

Please don't take offence as none was meant.
Stuart Redgard
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 3:41 pm
Jackie - I've never some across the term ultra vires before so “googled” it to get a definition. The general consensus on the internet seems to suggest that it means "beyond the powers". I wasn't sure of what the powers of the Town Council were with regard to grant applications or sponsorship so looked on the town councils website.

I found the following

“...

WILMSLOW TOWN COUNCIL - CRITERIA FOR ISSUING GRANTS AND DONATIONS


That the Town Council has the Statutory Power to incur expenditure for the purpose indicated.


That organisations requesting donations should be asked to submit a copy of their audited accounts for the last 12 months or failing that, their most recent accounts.


Organisations that have only recently set up and do not have audited accounts should not be discouraged from applying but should provide a financial statement regarding their proposed budget instead.


That requests should only be considered from local organisations or local branches of national organisations where evidence of local involvement can be provided (except in exceptional circumstances).

That the organisations applying should identify the specific use for the donation and the residents who would benefit from the donation.

That in the case of sponsorship, the event is promoted as being sponsored by Wilmslow Town Council.

...”

It says nothing about grants only being given to organisations within the Civil Parish of Wilmslow. Instead it uses the term “local”

As the prison is physically less than one mile from the Wilmslow civil parish boundary and in an adjoining parish I would define this as falling within the term “local”.

Styal Civil Parish is much smaller than Wilmslow and has a significantly smaller precept than Wilmslow. As such I personally am happy that my councillors have decided to be generous and neighborly and give a donation of less that 1% of the annual precept to a charity. (Yes Charity registered with the Charities Commission)
Stuart Redgard
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 3:51 pm
Oliver - I am aware through discussion with Councillor Watkins (Chair of Wilmslow Town Council), that it has considered temporary toilets. However, the costs are significantly more than your suggestion of £5000 for 18 Months. My recollection of the figure mentioned by Councillor Watkins was in the multiply of tens of thousands for 12 months at a time.

I too want to see toilets provided at the Carrs, But the simple matter is "that there isn't the political will to do toilets" at Cheshire East Council. Quote accredited to Councillor Gary Barton on a separate article of this site.

See http://bit.ly/1ycUvLC

I totally understand your comment. Maybe I am just fortunate that I do have the time as I am single, don't work due to a long term disability and have an interest in local government issues.

Can I suggest another means of having your opinion heard before decisions like this are made in the future. You could contact your local ward councillor by whatever means is most convenient to you and give then your opinions on future grant / sponsorship applications.

At least then your opinions will have been heard and they may or may not take them into account when voting.

Link to WTC councillor contact information http://bit.ly/1GO3CwS
DELETED ACCOUNT
Saturday 24th January 2015 at 7:46 pm
Stuart - just a couple of points. Styal parish council does define local = within the parish of Styal. Also as to showing accounts - you might want to look at the Charities Commission page, Charity number 1134581. The restaurant would be a help to Cheshire farmers and producers but this charity is now using a sourcing company. Four town councillors attended a presentation at styal on this venture - along with town councillors from Handforth and Styal. It will be interesting to see if they put in donations too and whether donations appear in Cheshire East accounts next year.
Oliver Romain
Sunday 25th January 2015 at 8:39 am
Stuart - thank you for you comments. Political will needs to exist in the WTC not just Cheshire East. A five minute search on the internet shows the loos are affordable. Portable toilets cost from £25 per week for long term hire. Lets assume we go for mains connection and one suitable for disabled users maybe add some insurance and we might be £60 per week.

http://bit.ly/15GZ6Qp
Perhaps Friends of the Carrs can put in a bid for the cash as a local charity, it might actually get done then!
Pete Taylor
Tuesday 27th January 2015 at 10:24 am
Any comment from WTC Councillors, with, or without, iPad?
David Jefferay
Tuesday 27th January 2015 at 10:15 pm
Hi Pete (and others),

Regarding the Clink Charity grant application, to be honest, I reviewed the application document and my initial intention was to vote against it as I didn't see the benefit to the town. However, I was made aware of some information that swayed my decision.

Firstly, I understand that some companies in Wilmslow have offered to provide employment for graduates of the restaurant. Given the significant influence that environment has on probability of re-offending, if such an offer of employment gives the graduates the opportunity for a fresh start away from their former (negative) environment then, as I see it, (a) that can only be a good thing for them and society and (b) it would suggest to me that there are jobs in Wilmslow that employers can't fill and this seems to be a way of providing resource for those employers.

Secondly, the Clink Charity is getting some very good press at the moment particularly due to the success of their Cardiff and Brixton restaurants. If the Styal one goes the same way, then Wilmslow (being the nearest big town) will more than likely benefit from that publicity.

I obviously can't speak for the other Councillors who voted but I think those benefits over the term of the restaurant (or at least the design life of the Coffee machine) would equate to at least £5000. That was my rationale, some people will agree with it and some won't. With that in mind, the agenda for the town council meeting is published ahead of the meeting so if anyone has opinions on any of the agenda items (not just grant applications), I will always welcome your views so please feel free to drop me an email ().

As for the toilet issue, I suspect the suggestion was a little tongue in cheek but Portaloos really aren't the solution from neither aesthetic nor practical perspectives. They really wouldn't create the impression we are trying to develop in Wilmslow, the costs wouldn't be as indicated above as they would need to be the plumbed in and disabled access versions and can you imagine the state of them following a busy summer weekend? A longer term solution is required and there are reasons (that you can easily find on this website) for why we don't have them yet.

Cheers

David
Barry Buxton
Wednesday 28th January 2015 at 2:22 pm
Yet another example of WTC having nothing better to do than handing out our money to the next 'good cause' that comes along to one of their self-obsessed meetings. The best thing that could happen on May 7 is for all the councillors to stand down and vote to abolish WTC.
£5,000 for a coffee machine is outrageous!
Sally Hoare
Sunday 8th February 2015 at 2:23 pm
£5000 really is not a large amount for a fairly affluent town to donate. Clink does seem to have a good record. We do need to reduce re-offending.
Jon Williams
Sunday 8th February 2015 at 5:59 pm
Sally, the prison does NOT have a good record !
Dave Cash
Monday 9th February 2015 at 12:01 am
AIUI 'The Clink' is an umbrella organisation for catering training/quals across HMP.
HMP Styal is one of the few closed women's prisons in the UK and its record prob reflects that fact.#
Hopefull,y the WTC grant (£5K) will be used to provide equipment for the Clink restaurant, opening in HMP Styal, for the benefit of visitors.
The aim of the Clink is to provide useful, transferable skills to inmates in preparation for their eventual release and avoid re-offending.

Note £5K is approx. half what WTC spent on the Wilmslow Christmas lights switch-on and reindeer parade in 2014