Youth Offending: no quick fix
A multi-agency team tackling Youth Offending in Warwickshire agrees with the Chief Inspector of Probation, Adam Bridges, that there is no simple solution to reducing offending amongst Young People.
A multi-agency team tackling Youth Offending in Warwickshire agrees with the Chief Inspector of Probation, Adam Bridges, that there is no simple solution to reducing offending amongst Young People.
But Warwickshire County Council’s Youth Offending Service and the Warwickshire Criminal Justice Board believe that with time and effort, the rate of young people who will offend or re-offend.
In Warwickshire, young offenders are offered support with education, training and employment through the Youth Offending Service which aims to divert children and young people from developing patterns of persistent or more serious offending.
It comes as the Government announce a £100 million Youth Crime Action Plan which outlines proposals such as greater support for victims of crime and more investment in non-custodial sentences.
These are two examples already proving successful in Warwickshire through restorative justice – where Young Offenders have a chance to put right the harm they have caused either through apology to the victim, community based reparation or direct reparation to the victim.
Cllr Richard Hobbs, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Community Protection, said: “The re-offending rate amongst young people in Warwickshire is amongst the lowest in the country with an average of 60 per cent of young offenders not re-offending.
“This shows restorative justice works because Young People not only learn about the consequences of their crime but also the affect it has on victims.”
Diane Johnson, head of Warwickshire Youth Offending Service, said: “We welcome the government’s youth crime action plan which supports Warwickshire’s approach to preventing the causes of youth crime, as well as robustly enforcing community sentences for those who have offended.”