Over 15,000 young people took part in Summer Splash in 2002, a programme designed to offer young people in deprived areas a way out of crime by getting them involved in positive recreational activities during the school holidays.
Total crime in the areas that ran Summer Splash fell by 7.4 per cent from June to August 2002, compared to a 2.9 per cent increase in 2001 during the same period.
The Splash 2002 report, published today by the Youth Justice Board, shows that in its third year Splash continued to make progress in keeping high risk young people out of trouble and involved in constructive activities. These projects were part of a wider programme of summer activities provided through various Government departments in Summer 2002.
The expansion of Splash last year, to include both the February and Whitsun half term holidays, has been shown to be beneficial. Increased continuity throughout the year enabled schemes to offer more support and advice to young people, including help with alcohol and drug abuse and anger management.
The average cost of providing a young person with an hour of activity was just £1.63, and nearly 1 million young-person hours were delivered throughout the year.
The success of Splash and Splash Extra, together with programmes such as Connexions Summer Plus, has led to a new cross-Government initiative to provide year round holiday activities for 8 to 19-year-olds at risk of social exclusion and crime. The Youth Justice Board is joining forces with the Department for Education and Skills and the New Opportunities Fund, alongside the Home Office and Department for Culture Media and Sport to combine existing schemes and provide greater help and support to vulnerable young people.
Lord Warner, chairman of the Youth Justice Board, said: “It is encouraging to see that Splash continued to provide an effective alternative to anti-social and criminal behaviour for so many young people in 2002. Alongside other programmes it had a high impact in cutting street crime last summer. I hope that the new funding arrangements will enable existing Splash schemes to build on the successes of the past three years, and use their experience to provide activities for an even greater number of vulnerable young people at risk of social exclusion and criminality.”
Notes for editors:
The Youth Justice Board was set up under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to lead the reforms to the youth justice system. It is chaired by Lord Warner of Brockley
Click below to view the report, which looks at Splash but not Splash Extra. Or you can view a summary document.
Splash schemes have been running in the holiday periods since summer 2000 and are made up of three arms: Splash, funded by the Youth Justice Board; Splash Extra, funded by the New Opportunities Fund and managed by the Youth Justice Board; and Splash Cymru which is a joint initiative between the Welsh Assembly and the Youth Justice Board.
In 2002, the Youth Justice Board provided just over £1.5 million for Splash schemes, which was matched locally by nearly £1.3 million. This provided a total of over £2.8 million to finance the whole Splash programme during February, Easter, Whitsun and summer.
73 Splash schemes ran in Summer 2002 (a further 59 were upgraded to Splash Extra). 113 schemes ran in February, 131 in Easter, and 110 during the Whitsun holiday.
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Link to YJB Splash Report 2002
