Spotlight On CCG Members :- Mr Paul Walmsley

Feb, 21 2017

~It’s epitomised in television and film. The good cop/bad cop and the drama that unfolds from the perpetrator  that has been at the hands of a criminal offence for the majority of their life. There’s never usually a happy ending for the criminal, he/she usually ends spending their final days locked in a cell whilst the victim is free from the chains of predatory behaviour. For this week’s ‘Spotlight on CCG Members’ there is a happy ending for the criminal. As the story develops for Lancashire’s ‘Paul Walmsley’.

For over 25 years Paul had been at the subject of criminal activities. Eleven years ago and the five years that ensued he became ‘Britain’s Most Wanted’ in which he spent on the run from the police on European shores. By 2011 he handed himself in to the Police and was sentenced to 10 years for a drugs conspiracy.

It was during this period that Paul made a concerted effort to distance himself from criminal activities and he went on to engage in education and become what HMP Service described as a ‘model prisoner’.

Capitalizing on such adversity led Paul to teach the desistance theory (to desist from criminal behaviours by using educational creativity, the arts and music). He teaches this positive course in Universities across the North West of England and he regularly participates in intervention projects in the Merseyside area to help and guide young people.

Mr. Walmsley  also spends a considerable amount of time volunteering in his local community. It’s here where he reaches out to families of prisoners by speaking openly about his experiences and helping them come to terms with  the harsh reality of what incarceration brings.

Paul has also been able to tap into his creative writing side and write his as yet unpublished book ‘Extra Time With Penalties, winning him a double award and a  writing scholarship. It’s not just this alone that has given him accreditation; previous literary pieces have also been recognised.

At present ( 2017 ) Paul is a qualified life coach, humanistic counsellor and NLP practitioner and spent the latter end of his sentence in the community on day release from a Category D (open) prison. He completed his teacher training, went on to become a tutor in a professional sports academy and was finally released on license into the community in July 2016.

In conclusion, Paul has the following to say on his past regrets, present beliefs and future possibilities,

“Knowing what I know now and given the chance, I would have done things differently in my youth. But my past has shaped me into the man I am today and I believe my wisdom, background, values and newly-found freedom have shaped me into a person who can now contribute to society in ways I never thought possible. The new chapter has just begun and I live my life in my imagination and not in my past”

We warmly welcome Mr. Paul Walmsley to the CCG.

^Alex Ashworth