Let's talk about self-employment - [PDF] - Niace

Introduction
There are around 3.5 million self-employed people in the UK
today. 1 They come from very different backgrounds and are
doing all sorts of things from driving cabs and child-minding
to running restaurants and shops, working with computers and
even inventing things. A few are making millions while, for
others, being self-employed is more of a lifestyle choice, giving
them the freedom to work the hours that suit them or
become their own boss.
As an ex-offender, there is nothing stopping you from
becoming self-employed if you want to. In fact, it’s quite a
good way to get away from the prejudices that ex-offenders
so often come up against when job hunting because, in most
cases, there’s no need to account for your past. That said, no
one could claim that becoming self-employed is an easy
option. Most people who make a success of self-employment
have experience, a bit of money behind them and support
from family and friends. In the early days, this really helps
because you’re likely to be working very hard and not bringing
in much money but, as an ex-offender, you may find you don’t
have much of this support available to you. On top of this,
you’ll need to overcome the extra challenges that having a
criminal record and time away from the job market will bring.
But, where there’s a will there’s a way. If you really do want to
1 source: Jobcentre Plus -
www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/jcp/customers/self_employment/index.html
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