The Twinning Project: how football, the beautiful game, can be used to reduce reoffending

Reoffending is one of the greatest socio-economic burdens currently facing the UK, costing taxpayers around £18.1 billion a year. 1 Recent studies show that 48% of ex-prisoners reoffend within a 12-month period, exacerbating the current prison overcrowding crisis. 2 The benefits of reducing recidivism are obvious, but viable pathways to this outcome have yet to be elucidated and executed. The twofold solution to this problem is proposed in the present practice note. Firstly, we need to change the way prisoners think about themselves, aiming to bond prisoners more tightly to mainstream society and law-abiding values. In doing so, opportunities for employment become more viable. Secondly, we need to increase society-at-large’s determination in bringing former prisoners back into the fold. The Twinning project is a new initiative that promises to help us accomplish both goals.