Rugby parents welcome support from a new initiative
A Rugby woman is the first of three specialist workers to be employed in a pioneering scheme aimed at helping the family members of young people who have offended.
Julia Arnold has been working with Warwickshire County Council’s Youth Offending Team. In a completely new role, Julia provides support, advice and guidance to the families, complementing the range of advice provided by counsellors, practitioners and mentors to the young people.
Family support has always been part of the work done with young people on court orders but the young person has always been the main focus so far. The new approach places more emphasis on tackling the problems that lead to offending behaviour.
Julia will be helping in a wide variety of ways. Some families want help with specific problems such as boundary setting, dealing with aggressive behaviour, understanding the dangers of substance misuse and the use of alcohol.
Others will need support if the young person is having difficulty in school, employment or with relationships. Julia will help face to face and will have links to many other services. She will also help to facilitate support groups.
The Police have already commented on the effectiveness of the scheme with Chief Inspector Mike Slater saying. “We strongly support this initiative as parents play a vital role in diverting young people from crime. They frequently ask us where to go for assistance and this service will be immensely helpful.”
Heather Walton, operations manager for the Youth Offending Team said: “It is often difficult for parents to get help when problems arise with young people aged 13 and over especially where behaviour is causing problems within the family or in the community.
“We are very pleased that funding has been made available by the Youth Justice Board and the Children’s Fund to allow us to work intensively with parents and carers when they need it.”