June 2025

Recycling Lives Charity & Social Enterprise has welcomed a new Chief Executive to its team.

Victoria Blakeman will lead our offender rehabilitation, residential, and food redistribution programmes as we work to increase our impact locally and nationally.

With a background as a prison governor, criminal justice consultant, and leading a food redistribution charity, she is a perfect fit for our work and ethos.

Ms Blakeman said of her new role: “I’m delighted to have joined the team. I’ve been familiar with Recycling Lives Charity for many years, particularly for its strong reputation in the rehabilitation sector. It’s an amazing organisation that has a huge impact on the people it supports.
“We want to support more people to change their lives and have a greater impact locally and, where possible, nationally too. It’s a big challenge, but I’m looking forward to developing a strategy to grow our offering, and working with the team to deliver on this.”

Victoria spent 11 years in the prison service, joining in 2000 as a direct entrant governor. She qualified as a Senior Operational Manager (Governing Governor) in 2004, working at HMPs Garth and Chelmsford before taking up position as Head of UK Detentions and Corrections in Kabul. She then moved into consultancy roles both domestically and internationally, including as a member of the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute.

Victoria later led Prospects Services, a firm delivering contracts for the Ministry of Justice, NHS and local authorities. More recently, she was CEO of the Big Food Project, a food redistribution charity. She is also a school governor.

Jonathan Taylor, Chairman of Trustees for the Charity, added: “We’re thrilled to have found someone like Victoria to guide our Charity in its next chapter. She is an excellent fit for our organisation, given her understanding of both rehabilitation and food redistribution.
“We’re all looking forward to working with her and embracing her recommendations.”

Our outgoing Chief Executive, Alasdair Jackson OBE, will continue to work with the Charity part-time, and is staying on in his roles with criminal justice organisations locally and nationally.

Mr Taylor added: “On behalf of all the team, I’d like to thank Alasdair for his passion and commitment over the last 17 years. He’s been an integral part of the Charity from day one, driving our prisons programme before stepping into the Chief Exec role full-time from 2018 – we know the role has changed his life in many ways, too.”