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More money to turn around offenders' lives |
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Wednesday, 30 January 2008 |
Young men who repeatedly break the law will get assistance to prevent them from spiraling further into a life of crime from a new £3m project announced by Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill today.
The Turnaround project, which will receive the money, targets young
male offenders who are failing with community-based sentences or have
had a number of short prison sentences. The project has a particular
focus on those with serious drug and alcohol issues.
The service will be based in the North Strathclyde and South West
Criminal Justice Authority areas and include a 12-bed residential unit
and four community-based support programmes.
Launching the service in Irvine, MacAskill said:
“I believe this project can help provide a radical approach to tackling
one of the biggest problems in our society - how to offer often damaged
and damaging young men a path out of crime. This innovative service
will pilot new ways of delivering services to a difficult to reach
group and has been carefully designed to ensure men with drug and
alcohol addictions can be dealt with more effectively. If we can begin
to tackle the root causes of reoffending then we stand a better chance
of cutting crime.
“I would like to acknowledge the substantial financial commitment being
made from a number of charitable funding sources to support the project
over the coming three years. One of the Government's main priorities is
funding new ways of responding to entrenched problems of substance
misuse. Showing those who have opted out of life that there is a more
rewarding alternative to a life of crime will not be easy, but a
crucial aspect of changing criminal behaviour is improving their
training and employment prospects, building a bit of self-esteem, and
getting them fit for life and work.”
One person has commented on this article. 1. More money to turn around offenders' lives
Anonymous, Unregistered Ah ! Kenny 500 more polis would do the same job !
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 30 January 2008 )
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