🎙️ In this episode of the What Really Matters podcast, we talk with Suzanne Thompson – founder of The Restore Trust, leader of the Key CafĂ© project, and a powerful advocate for compassion-led rehabilitation, about poverty, stigma, early experiences, and transforming lives through relationships and opportunity. Suzanne shares her journey growing up as the daughter of a Hungarian refugee in inner-city St Paul’s, navigating judgment, poverty, discrimination and cultural shock, and how those early experiences shaped her deep belief in empathy, dignity and second chances. From leaving school at 15 with no qualifications, to becoming a mum at 16, to later retraining, qualifying in social work, leading major education and employability programmes in probation, and founding an award-winning organisation supporting thousands across Bristol – Suzanne’s journey is a story of resilience, determination, and the power of human connection. We explore:
- Suzanne’s early life in St Paul’s, identity, and growing up in generational poverty.
- Leaving school at 15, early motherhood, and the turning point that changed her life.
- The career advisor who saw her potential — and why one relationship can change everything.
- Her work in probation, education, and founding The Restore Trust.
- The development of the Key Café: a pioneering transitional employment project for people leaving prison.
- Why reducing reoffending requires relationships, trust, trauma-informed support, and belief — not just tick-box systems.
- The reality of neurodiversity, labelling, poverty, and unmet needs in the criminal justice system.
- The role of the voluntary sector, what funders often misunderstand, and what needs to change.
- How early intervention and authentic, human-centred practice can break cycles long before adulthood.
đź’ˇ A deeply human, grounded and powerful conversation about resilience, compassion, community, and building systems that treat people with dignity, no matter their starting point. 🎙️ Want to have your say on What Really Matters to you? Contact Ben Carpenter at info@grassrootcommunities.org 👉 Subscribe for more inspiring conversations amplifying real stories from young people, practitioners and community leaders. đź’° If you’d like to explore sponsoring the What Really Matters podcast, please get in touch. Learning from the past and present to help inform a brighter future – What Really Matters ❤️