St Giles and the Wise Group have collaborated for five years to support people leaving custody and helping them build stable, connected lives. Today, we are deepening that partnership — uniting lived experience, Relational Mentoring, whole-family support, and data-driven insight to strengthen rehabilitation and reduce reoffending. Together, we bring more than 100 years of expertise supporting people facing the greatest barriers in our society.
People leaving custody often struggle with challenges across housing, health, income, family and employment. Successful resettlement depends on services working together in ways that are timely, flexible and person-centred — yet too many currently face fragmented provision.
Our strengthened partnership offers a single, integrated approach that aligns the system around the individual.
Together, we provide:
- Seamless continuity from custody to community, grounded in trusted, long-term relationships.
- Whole-person support, recognising that four in five people experience three or more interconnected needs.
- Strong community infrastructure, activating housing providers, Integrated Care Boards, employers, recovery networks, local authorities and grassroots organisations.
- Data and evidence at scale — millions of data points across 15 life domains informing what works in employment, wellbeing, housing, income and family stability.
- Lived-experience leadership, enabling meaningful engagement with people whose needs are not well met by statutory services.
- Proven public value: one St Giles programme using professionally trained caseworkers with lived experience delivered £8.54 of societal benefit for every £1 invested, with £1.4 million of societal value generated from a £165,132 investment
Why now
Government is calling for deeper integration across justice, health, housing, employment and family support. With pressure on courts, remand, mental health and recovery services, a whole-system approach is no longer optional — it is essential. St Giles Wise are strengthening their national partnership now because the system needs a stabilising, preventative pathway rooted in relationships and community networks, not a patchwork of disconnected services.
Our offer
We stand ready to work with government, local partners and communities to deliver a national, system-integrated rehabilitative pathway aligned with the ambitions of Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions, Health, Housing and local government.
Tracey Burley, Chief Executive of St Giles:
Our organisations bring the strength of a nationwide network, offering experience at every level – from strategic leadership to grassroots delivery. We have supported people through some of the most difficult transitions of their lives. Deepening this partnership creates the stability, trust and continuity that so many in the justice system need. It strengthens our ability to offer people real opportunities and reduce the pressure on services that are struggling to cope.Sean Duffy, Chief Executive of the Wise Group:
Too many people leaving custody face a tangle of housing, health, income and family challenges. The system cannot deal with these in isolation. By deepening our partnership, St Giles and the Wise Group are bringing together lived experience, relational mentoring and data-driven insight to deliver an integrated, preventative model that works for people and for public services.
Further reading:
https://www.stgilestrust.org.uk/our-impact/evaluations-of-our-work/