How learning to cook in prison for his DofE led Jon to writing his first cookbook
Image credit: Jonathan Gregson
As one of the first people in custody to achieve his Bronze, Silver and Gold DofE Awards, Jon’s journey from a Young Offenders Institution to becoming a professional chef is a remarkable one. He shares how learning to cook in prison for his Skills section not only got him out of his cell but laid the foundation for a successful career and led to him writing two cookbooks.
Starting the DofE
Jon had initially heard of the DofE back at school and was keen to take part, but peer pressure stopped him at the time, until he was offered the chance to take part in prison.
“I always liked the idea of the outdoor element, and I think as a child you sometimes need a bit of guidance, I think that’s where I went wrong in my teen years, so I didn’t end up doing my DofE at school. When I got to prison, they soon started offering DofE through Reading Football club. I remember when the Leaders came in and spoke about what you can gain from the programme, one of them said “I hope to see you at the palace getting your Gold Award.” That was the lightbulb moment in my head of thinking ‘ok I actually want to try this and achieve it.’
My initial motivation to starting my DofE in prison was I wanted to do anything that could get me out of my cell and doing something. For me, at the beginning I felt like I’d made my friends and family quite ashamed of me. I wanted to do anything that would make them proud of me, so I was excited to start my Bronze Award, but I didn’t realise actually how beneficial it would be.”
Discovering a passion for cooking
At first, the job in the kitchen was just a means to better food and passing the time. Jon didn’t know at the time that learning how to cook for his Skills section would plant the seeds to discovering a new passion and future career.
“I happened to get a job in the kitchen, mainly just to get more food I didn’t have a passion for cooking then, but I had to pick an activity for my Skills section. It was the only obvious option because there’s not a lot you can choose from in prison. This opened the door to do my Level 2 NVQ and the officers all supported me and agreed they wanted me to work towards that, so I ended up with a job in the Officers’ mess (an area for prison staff to take breaks) and there’s a bit more cooking that goes on there. In the inmates’ kitchen, the cooking is very limited. Whereas in the Officers’ mess, you learn more food hygiene and health and safety which is useful. I had to work in the Officers’ mess at prison to learn how to cook but even then, I thought it would be something I could fall back on. For me, the passion for cooking came after I left prison and started in the restaurant.”
The importance of DofE for Young Offenders
For Young Offenders, DofE can offer much more than just an escape from the monotony of prison life; it provides vital life skills and lessons that can reshape their futures. Many Young Offenders have never experienced real responsibility or been told they’ve achieved anything significant, doing the DofE is a chance to take on responsibility.
“In prison, you do lots of offender behaviour programmes as part of your ‘sentence plan’, but in reality they are quite formal and it’s a requirement to take them in order to move forward. Whereas a programme like the DofE encourages Young Offenders to get involved in different things and improve so many of your life skills. Especially the teamwork aspect, working with a team improves your confidence and self-esteem and so many Young Offenders struggle with that. To an outsider Young Offenders can seem confident but they’re not, they can be fragile, so I think it’s important for young people to get involved in something like the DofE that builds those interpersonal skills. For me, learning a skill like cooking became a career but even if it just becomes a hobby, I think it makes you feel like you’ve achieved something,
“The Volunteering section was also really beneficial, someone in prison might never have had any responsibility so being able to volunteer for your DofE, even small things like painting fences, allows Young Offenders to better their community and take on responsibility. Added up, DofE gives young people the most important thing—a sense of purpose and a sense of achievement. Young Offenders in prison have usually been told that they’ve never achieved anything.
“I believe that all young people in prison should have the chance to do their DofE. For me, it gave me the tools I needed to succeed.”
Life After Prison
Since leaving prison, Jon’s life transformed dramatically. Now working as a chef and having published his second cookbook, Speedy Weeknight Meals, he recognises that DofE not only gave him the tools to succeed but also the confidence to pursue his dreams.
After leaving prison I was working in a restaurant and I saw Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks on the shelf and thought, ‘wow I would love to have my own cookbook one day’. I didn’t know how it was going to happen, but you get that thought in your head and it’s something to aim towards. It’s taken a long time to get to the point where I can say to myself ‘I know this is where I wanted to be’. Goals are always moving and I’ve always said enjoy the journey, both the ups and the downs.”
Creating the cookbook
The idea of writing a cookbook may have seemed distant when Jon was first learning to cook in the prison kitchen, but it became a reality through dedication and passion.
“Achieving my NVQ and Gold Award in prison led to the career I am in today, I learned not to give up and continue working towards your goals, and that’s something I’ve lived by for the past 15 years – just knowing that sometimes when it’s uncomfortable you must keep going. Writing my own cookbook was something I’ve always wanted to do but I had no idea how to make that dream a reality. I knew I had to start by growing my social media following so I put my energy into posting my recipes on TikTok. It’s still the biggest compliment when you see someone on social media making something that you’ve created, and that was what got the ball rolling on the cookbook idea – I wanted it to be easy recipes for everyday people and adapting them to using ingredients that can easily be picked up at the supermarket and lessening the amount of ingredients. This cookbook is about cutting corners but not on flavours, it’s about making it so that someone at home doesn’t want to spend hours over the stove but can still make something good.
“I loved the cooking and sharing the recipes aspect of the cookbook, but I did struggle with the writing part, I’ve always been a bit like that at school, I learn more from doing rather than sitting down and writing. I can only really focus late at night so both cookbooks were written between midnight and 6am some nights! I’m so proud of the cookbook journey, because I did it by myself through sheer determination and that’s where my DofE came in – it taught me to believe in myself and if something doesn’t go your way, you do it another way.”
Read more about running DofE in prisons and Young Offender Institutions here.
