Youth justice volunteer scheme set for expansion

The Prison Advice and Care Trust's (PACT's) JustPeople initiative already supports offenders, ex-offenders and their families across the south west of England and London, including those at Feltham young offender institution (YOI) and Isis YOI, which is based at Belmarsh Prison.

The charity has announced the scheme will now be offered to offenders, ex-offenders and their families in Manchester.

So far, 80 volunteers have been trained in London and 25 are already working with families and offenders.

Almas Korotana, JustPeople volunteer co-ordinator, said: “As well as offering advice, the volunteers are also able to signpost other services.”

PACT chief executive Andy Keen-Downs argued that volunteering within the youth justice system allows people to tackle the root causes of reoffending within their own communities.

“As things stand, the lack of support for ex-offenders and their families means that around half of them are likely to be re-convicted of at least one further crime within the first year after release,” he explained.

“The importance of the JustPeople approach to criminal justice has been highlighted by the recent report into the riots of August 2011, written by the Riots Communities and Victims Panel, which concluded that the riots were partly caused by a lack of opportunities for young people, a failure of the justice system to rehabilitate offenders, and poor parenting.”

The project has received funding from the Monument Trust and the National Offender Management Service (Noms).