A message from
our founder

About Ryan

Ryan Jarvis is Conviction’s founder and coordinates the day to day running of the movement. He is the contact for questions about how we work.

Conviction is led and run by volunteers. Our About page explains how the organisation is run and how volunteers contribute.

It started with a laptop

I started Conviction in 2017 with a laptop and a small idea: to help people with prison law matters and appeals. Many felt they weren’t being listened to, were misunderstood or couldn’t get the support they desperately needed.

We soon saw how much even a small intervention could matter. Word got around that our work was helping people. Social media played a huge part in those early days, helping people find us and tell others about what we were doing.

People made it possible

We offered free, independent criminal justice advocacy across England and Wales with no funding. What we had was people willing to give their time and use their skills to help someone else.

I say “we” because none of this could have happened without my colleagues and the volunteers who have supported Conviction over the years. People have helped in all sorts of ways. Their work, often behind the scenes, has kept us going.

What we’ve learned

We’ve given a lot over the past nine years, and we’ve learned a lot too. The criminal justice system has changed around us. We’ve had to change with it to keep getting answers for the people we support.

One thing we see is how often people’s experiences overlap. Someone can have committed a crime and also have been a victim of crime. Services can struggle to respond to both, leaving people feeling alone, ignored or forgotten. I want us to take the time to understand the person and what they need.

There have been some very difficult times. We’ve seen other projects come and go, and keeping Conviction going hasn’t always been easy. The people we’ve helped and supported are the clearest reminder of why the work matters.

Changing how we work

Our structure has changed too. We began as a charitable company, later operated as a community interest company, and now carry on our work as an unincorporated association. People change, circumstances change, and we’ve had to find a way of working that fits the demand, the people involved and the resources we have.

We’ve learned how easily paperwork and bureaucracy can take time away from what matters: you, the people we’re here to help. For us, working as an association means less company administration and more flexibility in how we organise our support and respond to different needs.

We remain responsible for following the law, protecting people and their information, and putting good practice into our daily work. Our published policies and statements explain our approach, including how we handle information and how to raise a concern.

We’ve also had to be honest about our limits. When demand grew beyond what we could manage, we paused new referrals to focus on people we were already supporting and review how we worked.

Listening to people who use and refer to our service helped shape the changes we’ve made. Asking for help is now simpler. You can email us, and we’ll assess whether we can help, depending on what you need and the capacity we have.

My hope for the future

I want more people to find clear information, have their voice heard and get support without becoming lost in forms or being passed from one service to another. I want us to keep asking whether the way we work makes that easier.

For Conviction, that means continuing to develop the Criminal Justice Hub, supporting our volunteers and learning from the people who come to us. My hope is that we can reach more people while still giving each person we support the time and care they need. We’ll have to grow at a pace we can sustain.

There’s much to celebrate in seeing a small project grow into an established organisation. I’m proud of what we’ve done together, and I know there’s still more to learn.

To every colleague and volunteer who has given their time, and everyone who has trusted us to help: thank you. Conviction has always been powered by people. That’s how it began, and it’s how we keep going.

Ryan
Founder of Conviction

Find out more

Read what changed following our review, explore milestones in our work or find out how to ask for support.