Production Workshop Supervisor

As a Production Workshop Supervisor, you’ll oversee manufacturing operations in a prison-based workshop, supervising a small team of prisoners repurposing mattresses and beds. Your role is essential in ensuring production targets and quality standards are met while maintaining a safe, secure, and supportive work environment.

You’ll provide practical training, manage workflows, and embed key employability skills like teamwork, time management, and quality control—helping prisoners build a foundation for future employment.

Internally this role is known as an Industry Instructor.

Working Hours:

This is a full-time role, 38.5 hours per week, with the following schedule:

Four days per week: 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM

One half-day per week: either 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM or 1:00 PM to 5:30 PM

What You’ll Be Doing

Induct prisoners into the workshop, provide hands-on training in manufacturing processes, and ensure compliance with health & safety protocols.

Set work schedules, oversee production, and ensure all work meets contractual and quality standards.

Lead a small team, encourage a positive work ethic, and foster a rehabilitative environment using restorative practices.

Conduct risk assessments, maintain tool security, and ensure compliance with prison safety regulations.

Work with Work & Skills Coaches to help prisoners develop transferable skills for employment upon release.

Manage materials, inventory, and production targets while maintaining accurate records.

What We’re Looking For

✔ Experience in manufacturing, production, warehousing, or industrial operations.

✔ Ability to lead a team, set productivity goals, and maintain quality standards.

✔ Strong awareness of health, safety, and risk management in a hands-on work environment.

✔ Confident in organizing workloads, training individuals, and monitoring progress.

✔ Understanding of security protocols in a structured setting (experience in a custodial environment is a plus).

✔ Ideally, a teaching, assessor, or TAQA qualification (or willingness to work towards one).

Security & Screening Requirements

The successful candidate must pass prison clearance, including security vetting for a custodial setting, enhanced background checks covering employment history, criminal records, and right-to-work verification, as well as social media screening in line with security policies.

Who We Are

Here at People Plus, we make a positive difference to people’s lives – every single day.

We use our experience to support hundreds of thousands of people each year. Our committed teams work across Britain to deliver a range of public services, including employment support, skills training, independent living, prison education, starting a business, and support to help employers grow.

To put it simply, we:

Support people to find and keep jobs

Help people to set up their own businesses

Deliver skills training to further people’s careers

Work with employers to build a skilled and happy workforce

Rehabilitate people with convictions

Tackle the root causes of offending

Help people to live independently

Support carers

We are extremely proud to be a Silver accredited Investors in People organisation. This means that at PeoplePlus, the right principles are in place but more than that, it means our people and leaders are making active efforts to make sure that there’s real consistency and everyone in the organisation can feel the effects.