Just like thousands of other teachers across the UK, Luke Martin starts his day by taking the register, printing out activities and setting his learners practical tasks. But unlike most other teachers, the skills his students are learning include how to build and plaster walls – and at the end of each day, instead of heading home, they return to their wings at HMP Fosse Way in Leicester.
“The prison industries department, which is where all our construction-based workshops take place, doesn’t look how you might expect it to,” says Martin, who lives in Leicester with his wife and their two children. “It’s a separate building to the rest of the prison, next to another block that houses education studies like maths, English and art. People might assume it isn’t a very nice place to work, but it’s got the atmosphere of a modern college or university rather than a prison.”
After 11 years in the bricklaying industry – first as an apprentice, then as his own boss – Martin developed itchy feet, and started looking for a new challenge. Seeing young people thriving under his guidance was one of the highlights of his job, so he began looking into ways of using his years of experience to help budding bricklayers learn a new trade.
“When I was self-employed and taking on my own apprentices, I really enjoyed seeing them improve,” says Martin. “Watching the younger lads progressing and eventually making their own living from bricklaying made me think teaching could be the right career path for me.”
Browsing recruitment sites for new opportunities, Martin’s attention was caught by a role at HMP Fosse Way, teaching male prisoners practical skills including bricklaying and plastering.
“As well as the role itself, the stability of the job appealed, especially with two children to raise,” he says. “Being self-employed has its ups and downs – you can find yourself chasing money, and bad weather can shut a building site down altogether. The idea of having a regular income and a pension was attractive.”
After a successful interview, Martin was offered a job as a multi-skills tutor in the prison industries department, where prisoners learn practical skills – including painting and decorating and forklift driving – that they can use to find work once they’re released. Starting his full-time role in May 2024, Martin now teaches up to 20 prisoners a day in the skills they need to gain a level 1 qualification in bricklaying or plastering.
“I enjoy teaching in general, but my favourite part of the job is seeing the prisoners growing in confidence,” he says. “Most are enthusiastic and want to learn, but I’m always surprised by how fast they can develop in six weeks, especially the students who find it tough going at the start. We’ve all had frustrating days where you have to take down a wall and start again, and it’s my job to get them over that hurdle.
“I had one lad who kept telling me: ‘I’m not coming back tomorrow’, and at the end of every session I had to persuade him to keep at it. But by the end, he was one of my best students, and he thanked me for making him stay. Those are the moments I love most about my job – one student even sent me a thank-you card from his cell, which really meant a lot.”
Martin is particularly inspired by hearing his students talking about their plans for the future. “After gaining their qualification, they’ll tell me they want to get a job on a building site when they get out of prison,” he explains. “It’s good to know I’m supporting people who might otherwise find it difficult to find a job on the outside, and helping them to turn their lives around.”
After just six months as a prison educator, Martin is already considering his career aspirations, and is keen to encourage other people with a trade or education background to consider taking on a similar role.
“As well as helping my students to grow in confidence, there’s room in prison education for me to develop too,” he says. “I’m taking my level 3 teaching course in January, and there’s the potential to progress to a managerial role in the future.
“People often hold misconceptions about prison teaching, but working here isn’t how you might imagine it. Before I started, I thought I’d witness a lot of violence and bad behaviour, but I haven’t seen anything remotely like that.
“It’s all about mutual respect – ultimately, you’re talking to a person, regardless of what they’ve done in the past. It’s different to working on a building site, but I’m so glad I made the leap.”
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