Clear PathwaysProject CIC
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Criminal Justice Personal Development Health & Wellbeing Employability

Creating clear pathways
into better futures.

Evidence-informed programmes for children, young people and adults that improve confidence, wellbeing, education and employment. Delivered in Barrow-in-Furness and South Cumbria, and in prisons across the North West and nationally.

Working with
Funded by

Nobody gets written off.

A difficult start, a criminal record or a broken education shouldn’t decide the rest of someone’s life. We build the route out.

Our impact

Outcomes, not box ticking.

We measure because we want to know whether it worked, not because a funder asked. Every figure here comes from our own records, with the method stated. Where we can’t evidence something, we say so.

0People supported through structured programmes
0Reached through talks, seminars and workshops in prison, youth and statutory service settings
0Programme completion rate
0Progressions into work, training or volunteering

Figures are from our own delivery records and relate to our 10-week personal development and employability programme. Wellbeing, confidence and engagement measures are self-reported by participants at exit.

Improved confidence

Every participant completing a programme reported increased confidence at exit.

Improved wellbeing and health

Participants report better sleep, routine, physical activity and mental wellbeing.

Engagement with other services

Participants go on to engage with housing, health, recovery and employment support they had previously avoided.

Reduced offending during engagement

Participants report reduced offending behaviour while engaged with our programmes and services. This is self-reported and covers the period of engagement, not a formal reconviction measure.

Our difference

Lived experience opens the door. Professional practice does the work.

Plenty of organisations offer mentoring, or physical activity, or employability support. What sets Clear Pathways apart is the combination, and the standards we hold ourselves to while delivering it.

Genuine lived experience

Our team includes people who have been where participants are now. It earns trust quickly with people who have learned to be wary of services.

Professional expertise

Qualified, trained and supervised staff, working to defined standards with clear safeguarding, DBS and quality assurance processes.

Trauma-informed practice

We design sessions around safety, choice and trust, so people who have experienced adversity can take part without being re-exposed to it.

Evidence-informed delivery

Programme design draws on established behaviour change, exercise science and education practice, not on instinct alone.

Rooted in Furness

We work alongside schools, the council, health services, justice partners and employers across Barrow and South Cumbria, as neighbours, not as a provider travelling in.

Outcome measurement

Baseline, midpoint and exit measures on every programme, reported in the format commissioners need for their own governance.

Theory of change

How change actually happens.

Nothing here is a leap. Each stage is the precondition for the next, which is why we measure progress at every point rather than only at the end.

01

Trust

Someone turns up who understands, and keeps turning up.

02

Engagement

Attendance becomes consistent and voluntary.

03

Confidence

Small wins accumulate into a different self-image.

04

Routine

Sleep, activity and structure begin to hold.

05

Skills

Communication, teamwork and self-management develop.

06

Qualifications

Learning is accredited and formally recognised.

07

Employment

Work, training or education becomes achievable.

08

Purpose

Direction replaces drift, with reasons to keep going.

09

Healthier lives

Physical and mental health improve and hold.

10

Stronger communities

Progress extends to families and neighbourhoods.

Read our full approach Measured at baseline, midpoint and exit.

Evidence

What it looks like when it works.

Every participant who completed a programme reported improved confidence, wellbeing and health at exit. Seventeen have gone on to work, further education or volunteering.

7Into full-time employment
3Into part-time employment
3Into further education
4Into volunteering or mentoring roles
See our full impact
Stuart, a former programme participant, with Stephen Bell at the gym
Stuart came through the programme, gained employment, and has sustained it since. He still trains regularly.
Stuart, programme graduate

Request the full case study

What partners say

Trusted by the people who refer.

“I have never seen the men respond to someone like they did to you. We want you working with us as soon as possible.”

Prison Employment LeadHMP Wymott

“What you are doing is fantastic. This is exactly what we need, and we will do our best to support you in future projects.”

Work CoachDepartment for Work and Pensions

“Referrals are straightforward and we hear back quickly. The people we refer all love the programmes and working with Clear Pathways.”

ManagementRecovery Steps

With thanks

None of this happens on our own.

Every programme we run is made possible by the organisations who fund us, refer to us and deliver alongside us. To Sport England, The National Lottery, BBC Children in Need, UnLtd and Active Cumbria — and to HMPPS, DWP, Youth Justice, Recovery Steps and Mind in Furness — thank you. The work belongs to all of you as much as it does to us.

Ready to work together?

Whether you are referring someone, commissioning a service or exploring a partnership, the first step is the same: a conversation about what you need.