'WORKING TOGETHER TO REDUCE YOUTH CRIME'

25 MARCH 2002

On Monday, the Daily Express reported on its front page, "Kids of four turn to crime." As victims know, the fear of crime can have a debilitating effect on day-to-day life. Youth crime is doubly damaging - to the community and the lives of the young offenders themselves.

According to the most independent survey, national crime has fallen by 22% overall since 1997. The record in Northumbria - the police force area including South Tyneside - is more impressive even than that.

In the current national debate about youth and street crime, it is important to stress three points: that most young people are not criminals, about 100,000 people commit half of all crime and the most prolific 10% of all youth offenders commit half of all youth crime.

Quite rightly, the public look to government to tackle offending behaviour and deliver a criminal justice system that reflects the concerns of victims and tackles the causes of crime. In South Tyneside, 60 new officers will be signing up as Community Beat managers this year. A number of Government initiatives have had a positive impact on reducing offending, for example, the Alcohol Strategy deals with under-age drinking and the focus on dealing with truancy and school exclusions aims to keep young people in education and off the streets.

Last month I saw an encouraging sign of what can be done to ensure young people have proper respect for the community and their role in it. One group of public servants whom the vast majority of the public admire greatly are trying to help turn around youth crime in the region. The Tyne & Wear Fire Brigade and Sunderland Youth Offending Service have launched a very successful programme, the Phoenix Project which works with those youth who are at the risk of offending or have offended previously. Participants, aged between 13-17 years, take part in an intensive week-long work experience programme. As they work with each other and the fire officers they learn invaluable skills through teamwork, improve their own self-esteem and also enhance their own employment capability. As well as learning about the dangers of malicious fires and they get experience of a Fire Officer's work such as first-aid, the use of equipment and search-and-rescue exercises.

The impact on a young person's attitude to life and the benefit to the community are tangible. Some 82 young people have taken part over the last two years. Over the six month period before and after the programme is completed, it has seen 44% of participants not recording any offences and a 33% drop in offending the six months before and after participants take part in the programme. What is also invaluable is that many young people have also taken a renewed interest in education and work after finishing the programme, returning with a positive attitude towards supervision and their own behaviour in the community. After the programme is finished, participants can get involved in a mentoring scheme where officers continue to offer support and guidance to help the young person in the community. There is also the chance for participants to go on to more intensive schemes such as the Prince's Trust Volunteer's and develop further vital skills.It would be interesting to see the ideas behind a scheme like the Phoenix Project extended widely to South Shields where I am sure it would have a positive impact. The entire criminal system, our police, probation and prisons need to work together as well as work better. Youth crime is a problem for all of our communities and we all have a responsibility, parents, public servants, citizens and Government to try and tackle this problem with constructive solutions.