We recently wrote to all of our stitchers and invited them to share their Fine Cell Work stories with us. Below is one of the letters we received:

MY EXPERIENCE OF FINE CELL WORK AND LOCKDOWN

"Hello to you all and I hope this finds you all well and safe. Being in prison can be very difficult at times, there are so many things to deal with on a daily basis. We cannot change our pasts or the world we live in, but we can change for the better. Meeting the Fine Cell team and being part of it for me is very rewarding. The work the team do in society to keep the charity going and keep us in meaningful work is truly a great achievement and I thank all involved.

As with most prisons we are in lockdown, with this comes a lot of boredom. With the boredom and being confined to a small cell for so many hours in some cases can cause mental health issues. I have in the past suffered with mental health issues. Keeping myself occupied really helps me through the long days and nights.

Fine Cell Work keeps me occupied and for so many reasons is an uplifting experience. I take great pride in my work, this alone when seeing the finished product gives me great satisfaction. The fact the customers appreciate our work and, in some cases, even send in thank you cards just adds to the reward. Then on top of this we also get paid for our work.

I believe the Fine Cell charity contributes to so many aspects of an offender’s life – meaningful work, reward and rehabilitation. The lockdown has impacted on so many peoples lives, without the support of the Fine Cell team who have supplied us with work throughout, I don’t know how I would have got through this.

I would like to thank you all at Fine Cell and most importantly, a big thank you to all the people who buy our work, without your support there would be no charity.

Thank you."

- Yusuf, Fine Cell Work Stitcher