UK 
United States
Paul Cowley is Iceland’s Director of Rehabilitation – like Alan Sugar in TV’s popular, The Apprentice he grills candidates and offers jobs to the ex-offenders that are most thirsty for a new start.
Like Timpson and COOK, Iceland, best known for its frozen food offering has found the benefits of employing ex-offenders not only addresses philanthropic initiatives but also delivers a workforce that is motivated, reliable and trustworthy.
Paul Cowley, Director of Rehabilitation at Iceland talked to HR Grapevine about how the scheme works.
Paul Cowley
Director of Rehabilitation
‘I know about ex-offenders – I was one’
“I’ve been in this business for about 26 years now. I’m the son of two alcoholic parents – I dropped out of school at 15 leaving with just a swimming certificate and went to live on the streets, that ended up in crime, leading to a prison sentence in Risley prison,” he says.
By the age of 21 he enlisted in the Army and spent the next 17 years there - in 1994 after being an atheist for almost 38 years he attended an Alpha course and became a Christian, volunteering for prison visits. In 2002, after completing a degree in theology, he was ordained as a priest into the Church of England. In 2016 he was awarded an MBE from Her Majesty the Queen for ‘Services to Ex-Offenders’.
