It began with a bequest from an elderly spinster who died and left money in her will to provide an “institution for the purpose of reclaiming youthful offenders against the law”.
That was almost 150 years ago.
Today, Kibble is at the leading edge of social enterprise - creating for itself the necessary funding to provide some of the best care available for young boys at risk or in trouble.
Kibble is the UK’s largest multi-service centre of its kind in the country looking after more than 100 of the most troubled and troublesome boys between the ages of 12 and 18. In 2004, it won the UK’s Social Enterprise of the Year Award.
Local authorities and the Children’s Hearing system refers boys from all over Scotland for the specialist help, schooling and residential care on the Kibble campus, in Paisley.
It is a place where these young men can sort their lives out, become educated and as they get older be given the vital training and work experience to help them make their own way in the world as good citizens.
And more than that, Kibble is creating jobs for the young men who may otherwise find it difficult to find work as their school days come to an end.
But Kibble it’s not just for the Kibble boys. There are plenty training and development opportunities for young people and adults outside Kibble. People who may already be in work and want to improve their skills and gain more qualifications, or for those who want to embark on a new career in the social care sector.
And there’s the work Kibble does to provide all manner of products for charities and community groups at greatly-reduced prices, while at the same time protecting the environment.
That’s where KibbleWorks (correct) comes in - the enterprise and employment hub of Kibble located off-campus in a commercial business park.
The KibbleWorks Warehouse is the largest social enterprise, which is part of KibbleWorks. It is a joint initiative between Kibble and two charities - In Kind Direct and Green-Works. In Kind Direct accepts donations of brand-new surplus goods from manufacturers and retailers and distributes them to charities and community groups for around a tenth of their normal cost. Green-Works secures office furniture from Government departments and large companies and re-distributes it to schools, charities, community groups and start-up businesses at greatly discounted prices. The KibbleWorks Warehouse markets and distributes these goods.
KibbleWorks is also Home to the Men Can Care project, which aims to address the gender imbalance in the care sector and encourage more men to consider working with young people.
Then there’s Kibble’s Intensive Fostering Service, which recruits and trains people to become foster carers giving them a career in caring with good professional fees, training, qualifications and support.
Training Connections sees Kibble linking with the Renfrewshire Council for Voluntary Services to provide training for people working in the voluntary sector. KibbleWorks is also the base for the Learning Centre where computer and information technology skills are taught to young people and adults from the wider community.
WoodWorks (correct) Joinery is a project giving boys from Kibble the chance to have an apprenticeship in a joinery business, which carries out work just the same as any other building company.
KibbleWorks has also launched a project in partnership with the UK Centre for Continuing Professional Development to provide training to SVQ level for care sector staff from Kibble and other organisations.
And to feed all these hungry workers and students there is KibbleWorks Catering, which also provides external catering and trains boys in catering to SVQ standard.
Kibble’s chief executive, Graham Bell said: “Our social enterprises – businesses with a mission – provide a practical solution to the critical training and employment needs of young care leavers and the training needs of the wider community.
“The activities are designed around a range of skills and abilities and range from pre-apprenticeship training to full modern apprenticeships.
“In the coming year we will be developing new social enterprises, focused specifically at sustainable job creation for care leavers. We believe that nothing stops a Giro like a job. When the young men walk out the gates at Kibble we want them to walk straight into a place of work.”