The project, supported by the Fund for the Digital Republic, is launched to guide prisoners towards new opportunities for inclusion and employment
Smart Restart is now underway – one of the projects supported by the Fund for the Digital Republic – Social Enterprise as part of the Fuoriclasse call for proposals, promoted in collaboration with the National Council for Economics and Labour (CNEL) and the Ministry of Justice – Department of Prison Administration.
Co-ordinated by the Comunità di Sant’Egidio Acap Aps and implemented in partnership with Fondazione Mondo Digitale ETS, Intersos Italia and Cpia 3 Roma, Smart Restart offers integrated programmes of training, support and employment placement aimed at prisoners and those serving community sentences.
The aim is to transform skills into a practical tool for making a fresh start. The project combines literacy and digital training, language and soft skills, career guidance and personalised support, with a particular focus on people from migrant backgrounds. This programme aims not only at acquiring new knowledge, but also at strengthening independence, interpersonal skills and the ability to build a sustainable career path.
The activities take place at the Casal del Marmo Juvenile Detention Centre and the Regina Coeli Prison, and involve individuals supported by the Lazio Regional Office for Community Sentences. Over the course of 24 months, approximately 200 people will be reached, at least 150 of whom will take part in full training programmes.
Alongside basic digital skills, the programme includes workshops on digital fabrication, app design and digital art, culminating in the creation of small innovation spaces within the prisons. Participants will also be able to obtain micro-certifications for the digital skills they have acquired.
Training and employment to combat the risk of exclusion
Smart Restart forms part of the strategy behind the Fuoriclasse call for proposals, which has allocated a total of €10 million to 26 projects, with the aim of involving over 3,600 people across Italy. The initiatives involve 202 organisations and 92 prisons and aim to strengthen the role of digital training in social and vocational reintegration programmes. This is a particularly significant challenge because, although digital skills are now essential for accessing services, training opportunities and employment, their inclusion in vocational training programmes within prisons remains limited. Fuoriclasse was created precisely to help bridge this gap, by trialling models capable of supporting people through the transition from prison to life on the outside. In Smart Restart, digital technology thus becomes a lever for rebuilding independence, relationships and prospects, linking training to the opportunities offered by businesses, services and local networks. The project is one of four initiatives under the Fuoriclasse call for proposals, the launch of which the Fund for the Digital Republic has recently announced, alongside Inside & Out, Ri-Digital and Step-Up.
