The Forgiveness Project is a UK-based charity grounded in the belief that stories hold the power to transform individuals and communities.

Founded in 2003, the organization began as a personal search for understanding during a time of global conflict.

At the heart of The Forgiveness Project is its collection of personal testimonies. These stories come from people who have experienced violence, loss, injustice or deep personal hurt, and who found their own path – whether through forgiveness, understanding or simply choosing not to return harm with harm. The organization does not promote a single definition of forgiveness. Instead, it shows the many ways people navigate pain and seek healing in their own time and in their own way.

Its mission is to restore and humanize people and communities, creating safe spaces for open dialogue, reflection, and healing.

Healing Through Storytelling: The Power of Personal Narratives

For over 16 years, The Forgiveness Project has fostered meaningful conversations through storytelling, creative dialogue, and community engagement.

Their work includes educational programs, restorative conversations and community dialogues that use storytelling as a catalyst for empathy and change.

By sharing these lived experiences, The Forgiveness Project helps individuals, schools and communities reflect on conflict, understand the roots of harm and explore what healing might look like.

Its award-winning RESTORE prison programme supports incarcerated individuals in developing empathy and embracing restorative practices.

RESTORE is built around structured group-based sessions in a safe, non-judgmental environment. It uses storytelling, guided reflection, and creative arts to help participants confront and work through trauma, guilt, remorse, and the effects of their crimes on others.

The initiative doesn’t only support prisoners. RESTORE also offers bespoke programs for prison officers – helping build empathy and positive relationships throughout the prison community.

Beyond prisons, it offers educational resources, online and in-person events, and The Forgiveness Café, where participants explore forgiveness in compassionate, judgment-free environments.

Forgiveness Cafés: Conversations That Change Lives

The charity’s growing impact comes from quietly planting seeds of transformation, shifting mindsets and inspiring hope, resilience, and empathy that can take years to fully bloom. One participant described a “seismic shift in perspective,” a glimpse of light and joy after years of pain.

By promoting restorative justice and healing, The Forgiveness Project invites everyone – whether victim, perpetrator, or community member – to embark on the challenging but rewarding journey toward forgiveness and reconciliation.

Become a Supporter

The Forgiveness Project exists today because of the people who believe in the power of real stories to inspire understanding, healing and change. Supporters help ensure that this work continues to reach individuals and communities around the world.

You can support The Forgiveness Project by becoming a Friend, a Guardian or an Ambassador. Each level plays a vital role in sustaining the organization’s long-term stability and growth.

Learn more and join their mission to create a more empathetic and unified world at theforgivenessproject.com.

Stay Connected With Us

• TikTok
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• YouTube