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A right royal spruce up!
Offenders in York are rolling up their sleeves for a right royal spruce up of Tadcaster Road, as part of a national campaign to ‘Clean for The Queen’ in time for Her Majesty the Queen’s 90th birthday.
The team of offenders, performing community payback, will be painting half a mile of railings along Tadcaster Road, under the watchful eye of York’s Community Payback supervisor, Joe Murphy.
Ed Gray, York and Selby Community Payback Manager, The Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company Limited, explains more:
“Tadcaster Road is one of the main routes into the City so this is an ideal opportunity for offenders to make a real and lasting difference in helping to keep York looking its best for residents and visitors - as well as looking fit for a Queen!
“It also means that offenders are visibly paying back to the community where they have caused most harm, by undertaking physically demanding work which would not otherwise be completed.”
Throughout the week offenders will also be out litter picking and generally tidy areas of the city, some of which were affected by the recent floods. One of the locations benefiting is Clifton Backies Nature Reserve, where offenders will be edging and scraping footpaths.
Every year offenders complete thousands of hours of community payback supporting local organisations and charities on projects that may not otherwise be completed. Other projects recently completed by York’s payback team include a much needed clean up of the grounds surrounding Yearsley swimming pool and the overhaul of the community garden at Foxwood Community Centre where they have cut back years of overgrown vegetation and re-established the footpaths.
Community payback is a nationwide project which provides rigorous and demanding punishment ordered by the courts. The main purpose is to punish the offender while making sure they pay something back to the community. In York, community payback is managed by the Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company - a prime provider of local probation services.
Cllr Andrew Waller, Executive Member for the Environment said:
“I’d like to thank the Community Payback team for their huge contribution to York’s Clean for The Queen campaign this week.
“This is a great opportunity for residents and organisations to take pride in their local area and spend a few hours together cleaning up. I hope as many people as possible will follow their example and join in, as the campaign benefits both the environment and those who live and work in the city.”
Groups or individuals who would like to take part in Clean for The Queen can find out more at www.york.gov.uk/cleanforthequeen They should register their interest locally by calling 01904 551551 or emailing [email protected] Residents may also request a spring clean of an area they feel needs sprucing up on the same contact details.
Offenders help clean for the Queen!
Offenders help clean for the Queen!
York residents are being encouraged to roll up their sleeves and spruce up their neighbourhoods as part of a national campaign to ‘Clean for The Queen’ in time for Her Majesty the Queen’s 90th birthday. Whilst litter picks in York are welcome at any time, the campaign focuses on a national weekend of litter picking from Friday 4 to Sunday 6 March. It aims to inspire a million people to enjoy a few hours together tidying up, to make their local area a more pleasant environment.
Clean for The Queen is backed by organisations such as the National Trust, the RSPB, the Women’s Institute, Keep Britain Tidy and all the other major anti-litter organisations from across the UK.
The campaign asks schools, community and friends groups, businesses and individual residents to pitch in and take part. We are delighted to confirm that much of the manpower will be provided by the CRCs York community payback team.
Groups or individuals who would like to take part in Clean for The Queen can arrange events any time up to Sunday 6 March. They should register their interest locally by calling 01904 551551 or emailing [email protected]. You can find out more about the national campaign at www.cleanforthequeen.co.uk
Follow the payback team on @HLNYpayback and see payback in action for yourself.
Martin Davies CEO of HLNY and West Yorkshire community rehabilitation companies
Martin Davies, CEO of Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire (HLNY) Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) will assume the responsibility of becoming the CEO of both HLNY and West Yorkshire community rehabilitation companies.
Martin has a long and experienced career in probation, dating back to 2003, including being the Chief Executive of Lincolnshire Probation Trust and Assistant Chief Officer in Avon and Somerset Probation Trust.
The announcement follows the decision by Bill McHugh, CEO of West Yorkshire CRC, to leave the organisation.
Martin adds: “I am delighted to assume the responsibility of becoming the CEO of both HLNY and West Yorkshire CRC. Working closely together to ensure a co-ordinated approach will help deliver best value and provide quality services and products - designed to reduce reoffending and make our communities safer.”
Offender mentoring project secures additional funding
Offender mentoring project secures additional funding
The success of a mentoring project that works to address the many barriers faced by disadvantaged offenders has led to it being extended until 31 March 2016.
Joint financing of £47,000 has been offered by The Humberside, Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company Ltd and Lincolnshire County Council’s Safer Communities Services.
The Lincolnshire Offender Mentoring project has been delivered by the national charity, Sova, since September 2013. It was recently acknowledged as an example of best practice during the Probation Institute Centre of Excellence conference in Lincoln in January 2015.
Community volunteers are recruited, trained and supported to work one-to-one with offenders under probation supervision. The team designs and agrees a bespoke support package for each individual offender. This enables and empowers that person to overcome issues to successfully complete their community sentence and this makes our local communities safer places in which to live. Volunteers gain exceptional skills through their training and the interaction with mentees, which often act as a launch pad to a career in criminal justice, social care or other public services.
Since April 2014, 30 offenders have received over 900 hours of support from a dedicated team of volunteers.
Sova Area Manager Samantha Dumoulin says: “In a typical year, Sova volunteers will dedicate 1,000 hours of their time to help offenders in Lincolnshire. They provide practical help in difficult times along with advice, guidance, friendship and understanding that benefits not just the individuals they work with, but the community as a whole.”
Claire Seabourne, Safer Communities Service, adds: “In providing funding to continue this service we recognise that mentoring enriches the support provided to service users and can be effective in creating behaviour change and desistance.”
The project remains committed to protecting the public in order to prevent victims being created. Stopping any victimisation of the public and to areas of the community remains at the heart of what we do. Mentoring offenders through gainfully occupying their time and changing their lives helps us achieve that goal.
Smarter York Big Spring Clean 2015
City of York Council will be joining forces with local residents, community groups and businesses over the last weekend of March to carry out an annual city-wide spring clean of York.
During March, the council will focus on supporting hard-working residents committed to keeping their neighbourhood looking – and staying – tidy. So far, community groups such as the Friends of Leeman Park have committed to spruce up a play ground, Lindsey Avenue Residents’ Association will be encouraging people to recycle even more and the Dunnington in Bloom team will be concentrating their efforts on tidying a layby on the A1079.
Smarter York officers will be working with local businesses to brush up their immediate area as it’s good for business and for the surrounding community. Pupils at Woodthorpe Primary School are among the York schools being encouraged to spend an hour of the last afternoon of the spring term having a Spring Clean. Students are also being approached to join in, as well as staff at City of York Council who are being encouraged to go out and help in their own neighbourhoods as part of the ongoing support the council gives them to volunteer to boost the quality of life in York.
The council is also working with the Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company for offenders sentenced to Community Payback to undertake spring cleaning tasks such as painting over graffiti, fixing broken fencing, picking litter and clearing overgrown areas. Community Payback is physically-demanding work which might otherwise not be done, and is performed by offenders who are supervised by Community Rehabilitation Companies as part of their community sentence.
Anyone who wants to take part can contact any of the groups named above, or they can email [email protected] or call 01904 551551. An officer will get in touch to find out how much and what kind of help is available, where and for how long. They’ll also give health and safety advice as well as letting people know where they can collect bin bags from and where the full, tied ones should be left. Individuals wanting to do their bit independently are advised to wear gloves when collecting plastics, tin foil, paper and cardboard, cans and tins but should contact Smarter York if they find needles, syringes, asbestos, dog fouling or other potentially unsafe substances. Care should always be taken to avoid litter picking close to rivers and on roads and private property.
Cllr Tracey Simpson-Laing, Cabinet Member for Communities, said: “While we’re focusing on the last weekend of March this year, don’t be limited by that: anyone’s welcome to leap into Big Spring Clean action any time! Research shows that spring cleaning areas and setting a standard really helps communities take even more pride in their neighbourhoods. Well-maintained areas tend to have less anti-social behaviour and children grow up learning to look after where they live. The annual Spring Clean is a great way for the council to highlight the volunteering opportunities available. Thank you to everyone who’s planning to join in – I’ll be joining you with my litter picker, gloves and bag!”
Ed Gray, Community Payback Manager, Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company, said: “The annual Spring Clean is now in its third year and we are delighted to once again join forces with the Council on this initiative to provide the manpower required. The Spring Clean is a terrific initiative which sees offenders giving visible and demanding payback to local communities where they have caused most harm through their offending.”
Smarter York aims to help volunteers from our local communities and businesses to maintain a clean, green and safe environment for York. The initiative encourages and works with residents to create attractive neighbourhoods with a real sense of community and to tackle the things that can spoil our neighbourhoods for example littering or graffiti.
Probation Institute Workshop 2015: Peer and Offender Mentoring Schemes- 14/01/2015
Probation Institute Workshop 2015: Peer and Offender Mentoring Schemes
On Tuesday 14 January 2015 the Probation Institute held a conference in the City of Lincoln. One of the key themes of the conference was the use of peer and offender mentoring schemes. Humberside Lincolnshire North Yorkshire CRC Ltd (HLNY CRC) and Sova were invited to host a 2 hour workshop at the conference to share their experience of a recently piloted offender mentoring scheme in Lincoln. To read more about the workshop and its outcomes, please click here to download the full report.
Offenders Achieve Qualifications By Restoring The Region’s Crumbling Dry Stone Walls - 16/12/2014
Offenders Achieve Qualifications By Restoring The Region’s Crumbling Dry Stone Walls - 16/12/2014
During November and December, eight offenders in North Yorkshire successfully completed a six day dry stone walling course in the Yorkshire Dales and achieved an accredited basic dry stone walling qualification in the process through the Building Blocks scheme.
The Building Blocks scheme is a joint project between Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and The Lincolnshire, Humberside and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company - running as part of the Upper Nidderdale Landscape Partnership, with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the North Yorkshire Police Crime Commissioner’s Community Fund. The scheme rebuilds damaged dry stone walls in Upper Nidderdale through a training programme for offenders who are on Community Payback.
Community Payback is a nationwide project which provides rigorous and demanding punishment, ordered by the courts. The main purpose is to punish offenders while making sure they pay something back to the community.
The Building Blocks scheme works with walling professionals who have recognised qualifications in dry stone walling, as well as a Dry Stone Walling Association’s Instructor certificate. The instructor ensures that all the walls built through the scheme are constructed to a good structural standard, which will withstand the test of time.
At the end of the six day course, Craven College assessed the standard of the offenders - all of whom successfully achieved an accredited basic dry stone walling qualification.
Stephen Bostock, Craven College Rural Skills tutor and Dry Stone Walling Association Master Craftsman and Assessor explains more:
“The offenders built a very presentable dry stone wall, using some very difficult and uneven shaped stone.Although they only had six days training, the quality of their work was very good. The offenders also demonstrated a good knowledge of the different aspects of the basic building procedure and the regional variations in construction methods.Building Blocks is a worthwhile scheme for all involved - not least the offenders who have developed some invaluable employment skills and, at the same time, built a finished product to be proud of.”
Liz Rushton, Community Payback Manager, The Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company Limited, said:
“This is a positive way for offenders to give payback to local communities, while at the same time helping them to develop their employability skills to gain longer term stable employment - which is one of the most important factors in breaking the reoffending cycle. We hope that now these offenders have qualified they will continue with their training and development by joining one of the volunteer groups in the Nidderdale AONB.”
Iain Mann, Landscape Partnership Scheme Manager, Nidderdale AONB, adds:
“Dry stone walls are a hugely valuable part of the Nidderdale AONB landscape but many are deteriorating and it’s an uphill battle to keep them in good repair. Restoring them is important for local communities because they provide livestock control, they are of significant heritage value and they help to shape the landscape of the Dales.”
The next cohort of offenders start work on this project in January. Over the coming four years the project aims to repair more than 1,000m of dry stone walls to enhance Upper Nidderdale’s landscape and provide nearly 100 offenders on Community Payback the opportunity to achieve a vocational training qualification.
Julia Mulligan, Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire said:
“This project is an excellent example of how the Community Fund can be used to rehabilitate offenders whilst putting something back into our communities. Having the proper skills and a recognised qualification goes a long way to getting a job which in turn dramatically reduces the chances of reoffending. The fact that the dry stone walls in Nidderdale need to be repaired, is also worthwhile in itself.”
Transforming Rehabilitation: Announcement of contract award - 09/12/2014
Following the announcement of Preferred Bidders on 29 October, and following further negotiations between the Ministry of Justice and those bidders, the Secretary of State has announced the award of contracts to the successful bidders for the 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs).
The successful bidder for our CRC is Purple Futures.
The complete list of successful bidders can be found at: www.Justice.gov.uk
This announcement marks the conclusion of a period of robust and thorough assessment of bidders’ mobilisation plans and proposals for the delivery of new and innovative services for offenders.
As planned, Purple Futures is due to take over the running of our CRC early in 2015. It is intended that the provisions of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014 will also commence from the date of Service Transition.
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