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School of Business and Management

Project ReMAKE

Project ReMAKE is a 6 to 8-week entrepreneurship training programme for formerly incarcerated people, that seeks to prepare them to re-enter employment.

Project ReMAKE
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Inspired by a similar programme at Stanford University, Judge Kameel Khan founded Project ReMAKE.

Project ReMAKE is an entrepreneurship training programme for formerly incarcerated individuals, equipping them with business skills to re-enter employment and preparing them to integrate into society. The programme, founded by Judge Kameel Khan, is delivered in partnership with Queen Mary’s School of Business and Management and the School of Law.

Throughout the 7 weeks of training, participants work with student advisors and business mentors to formulate business ideas, create business plans, and put together a pitch to investors. Upon completion of the programme, successful participants are put forward for internships with Capita Plc.

This year, there are 14 formerly incarcerated individuals, 23 student advisors, and 17 business mentors participated in the programme. The students highlighted the benefits of experiential and interdisciplinary learning and the long-lasting impact of this unique programme on their life. In particular, they found the programme inspiring and encouraged them to reflect on their own values with regard to social justice and/or environmental issues and started to think more about the strengths and weaknesses of how we do things and potential improvements.

Dr Kameel Khan comment on how impressive he was with QM student advisors: “What has really sort of given me a lot of hope is the kind of optimism that the students have about things. And I have a lot of faith going forward with people like that, because they want to make the world a better place. And that really comes through with the students.”

Statistics

  • Over 80% of the prison population is interested in starting a business, compared to 40% of the UK population.
  • In 2022, 20 formerly incarcerated people successfully graduated from the programme, with the help of Queen Mary students.
  • Almost half of the 2022 graduates were successful in securing an internship with Capita Plc.
  • Of the 2018 and 2019 cohorts, 40% of graduates started a business.
  • The programme has observed no re-offending to date.

Get involved

Please email ent-hub@qmul.ac.uk for more information about Project ReMAKE and how to get involved.

Testimonials

Photo of Laura Hoffman “I feel grateful to Queen Mary for providing me with the opportunity to be a part of this amazing cause. I have found a new friend in my mentee and I am super excited to see where life takes him and his business. My heart fills with joy when I think about the fact that I was able to make an impact on someone’s life."

Laura Hoffmann, BSc Accounting and Finance student

 

“I found it particularly inspiring seeing the entrepreneurs self-improvement along the duration of this program. Despite minor setbacks and having to reconsider parts of their plans, they all left the program with a greater sense of individuality.”

Jaylene Chelsea Neeala Ali (LLB Global Law)

 

Photo of Omar Mentesh "Being somebody who has been a prisoner for over seven years, I’ve become used to being let down and led up the garden path. I’ve completed more courses than I’ve had hot dinners, but rarely had access to anything tangible to grasp onto. Project ReMAKE has allowed me to see myself in a different light, open new doors, and let go of the past, in exchange for the future."

Omar Mentesh, scheme participant

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