Blackpool project beats national reoffending rates

The Triage service, commissioned by Blackpool Council and run by Child Action North West, has been awarded £30,000 from the Police and Crime Commissioner for Lancashire following its success.

Lancashire Constabulary refers 10- to 17-year-olds who have committed low-level crimes to the service as an alternative to prosecution.

Young people who are referred are required to write a letter of apology to their victims and work on reparation projects across the town.

This includes working at the town’s Cherry Tree allotments, which had previously been an area with a high number of minor offences such as thefts and vandalism.

Trevor Hannon, reparation lead worker for Child Action North West, said that once the young people have completed the work, they are invited to return as a volunteer and are signposted to other community projects they could take part in.

Labour councillor Sarah Riding, the cabinet member for children’s services at Blackpool, said: “The Triage service targets young people who may be on the path to a life of crime. But instead of castigating them, we work to make them realise what they have done wrong, how it has affected victims and how it could affect their future prospects.”

According to latest Ministry of Justice figures, released in 2011, 36.9 per cent of 10- to 17-year-old offenders reoffend.