There is nothing about a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to become a butterfly. Or.. ‘Most people want to change, they just need a helping hand and some guidance.’ David Apparicio (Chrysalis Foundation) David Apparicio is the creator of the Chrysalis Programme. During his work as a magistrate he developed his ambition to change the world for offenders. Recently invited to become a Fellow by the Trustees of the Royal Society of Arts in recognition of his ‘innovative work in offender rehabilitation and development’, Apparicio was also awarded with a place on the 2009 Courvoisier Future 500 list of innovative business brains and creative talent. Q: You are very passionate about inspiring young people. Why is the Chrysalis Programme important in today’s society? A: I believe that we as a society have created the growing problem of what I call the ‘Dis. Generation’ Remember where you heard it first! We’ve all heard of the ‘thirty-somethings’, ‘baby-boomers’, ‘YUPPIES’, ‘NEETs’, etc, but the ‘Dis Generation’ are a generation or two of young people that are: disaffected, disillusioned, disengaged, disconnected, disadvantaged, disavowed, dispossessed, discarded, disregarded, disappointed. They lack the ‘essential life skills’ that would enable them to interact with other human beings around them. Many of these individuals end up on the wrong side of the law. Many bump around not sure what to do with their lives and are given little support and/or guidance to help them move forward.
Combining my experience as a Justice of the Peace (Magistrate) and designer of management training programmes (Previously Head of Learning and Development within The Royal Mail), I personally funded the research, design and piloting of the innovative development solution called The Chrysalis Programme. the Custodial Review
Through this research it became apparent that: Prison sentences are not succeeding in turning the majority of offenders away from crime and short prison sentences simply in reducing re-offending. Sadly, the Criminal justice system operates a ‘Broken Business Model’ with 75% failure rate that would not be accepted in any other industry. What was interesting was the approach in the criminal justice system is very different to that of the business world when it attempts to close the gap between actual and desired behaviours/performance. In the Criminal Justice System the intervention in a sentencing situation is primarily to administer custodial or community based punishment (negative re-enforcement), whereas in the business world where there is a gap in behaviours, you would aim to close that gap through the provision of knowledge, skills, practice, behaviours/values (training) that moves the individual to our desired state (positive reinforcement) – Creating Capability!
activities, problem solving, listening and discussions. The difference between the Chrysalis Programme and most other programmes is that we focus on positive reinforcement that helps create capability, increases self-confidence, self-belief, self-esteem in participants by providing them with, what we call ‘essential Life skills’ which enables them to personally own and drive positive, sustainable change in their lives. We focus on telling them what they can and should do and how to achieve positive outcomes (positive re-enforcement), rather on telling them what they mustn’t do or should not have done (negative reinforcement). Q: As a society, do you think our judicial system is working for us?
Q: The programme is achieving amazing results, How does the Chrysalis Programme work?
A: No it is not. Quite simply our current UK criminal justice system is a broken business model with a resultant 75% failure rate (75% reoffend with two year of leaving prison). This failure rate would not be tolerated in any other industry/business. So why do we accept it here? So how can we change the system you ask me? Well, simple things…
A The Chrysalis Programme consists of a series of guided learning sessions/modules delivered using a mixture of presentations, group and individual exercises, practical
1) Let’s Stop talking about Rehabilitation when we mean Reintegration. We have historically used the term Rehabilitation when talking about the holistic approach to offender
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