Our mission, values and history
Our mission
StandOut's mission is to empower people leaving prison to transform their lives, realise their potential, and leave the criminal justice system behind - for good.
Our values
At StandOut, we’re led by our values: Champions, Connected, Committed, First Class, and Courageous. They are at the heart of everything we do – from how we work with our participants, to how we relate to each other, our partners and stakeholders. We don't believe in quick fixes, nor that life runs in straight lines, especially if someone has experienced prison. Our values keep us focused and remind us of the things that matter most.
Champions
We are people first
We are about people before process.
We recognise that life has not had the same starting point for all, and seek to meet and work with people where they are at.
We believe the best in people, and empower them to reach their potential.
We believe change requires courage.
Connected
We are stronger together
We are relational and believe we need others to succeed in work and in life.
We believe in the power of partnership, collaborating in every aspect of our work.
We are one team, we don’t do this alone.
Committed
We are in it for the long haul
Life is complicated and there is rarely a quick fix.
We offer consistent support for as long as is needed.
Our door is always open, for the highs and the lows.
We are seeking to provoke long term change.
First Class
We aim for excellence
We give our absolute best.
We challenge the status quo.
We believe a culture of reflection, development and feedback facilitates growth.
We aim to lead by example in our approach, professionalism and results.
Courageous
We embrace challenge
We are bold and hold to our values.
We take calculated risk.
We are resilient in the face of difficulty.
We stand up for what is right.
Our history
StandOut is the vision of our founders Penny Parker and Jo Fellows.
Penny’s background was in running the highly regarded Sycamore Tree restorative justice course, which she was involved in setting up in HMPs Wandsworth, Bronzefield and Pentonville. Too often she saw that having unlocked a motivation to change in people, the practical steps to prepare for the transition out of prison were missing. When she found Resurgo’s award-winning Spear Programme, Penny thought it could be adapted to work very effectively with people leaving prison. Working with Jo, whose background was in working with young people facing barriers to employment through the Spear Programme, they brought their shared vision to reality in 2017 as they piloted StandOut in HMP Wandsworth.
Having successfully established the programme in HMP Wandsworth, in 2019 StandOut launched in HMP Pentonville, and in 2023 we launched in our third prison - HMP Wormwood Scrubs.
StandOut stories
“Ever since the early days of developing StandOut, I have reminded the team frequently that our ultimate mission is to not exist: what do I mean by that? Like many charities StandOut was a passion project - but more importantly, StandOut was a response to the need we had observed - for meaningful and effective person-centred support for people preparing to leave prison”.