Programmes to reduce offending in young people
Research tells us that punitive approaches to tackling youth crime are largely expensive and ineffective. We are therefore committed to targeting our resources towards early intervention approaches and expanding our community-based programmes. There is no single intervention which is universally successful in reducing offending and it is therefore essential that we develop a range of approaches which have a track record of being effective.
There are a number of programmes currently available for young people who have offended:
The Offence Resolution Programme (ORP)
This is a partnership between Social Work, the Police and the Children's Reporter. The programmes on offer are targeted at young people who have committed a small number of offences. The primary aim is to reduce the likelihood of re-offending and support a resolution between offender and victim.
The Youth Offending Service
This service is targeted at young people who are beginning to demonstrate a pattern of offending and offers more intensive support than the ORP. Again, the aim is to reduce or eliminate offending behaviour and to divert young people from entering the adult criminal justice system.
More information
In addition to the above services, there are also a range of more informal services provided across the Borders, primarily through the voluntary sector. These include youth work provision in specific localities, e.g. Dry Dock, The Gate and Ish'uze as well as Borders-wide services such as:
The above links will take you to external websites.
Please contact your local Social Work office for more information.
Unified Solutions.