John Drew paid a visit to the Hungate archaeological dig to meet young people who were working at the site as part of reparation programmes.
The archaeological project is one of many forms of community work carried out by young people as part of reparation orders supervised by York youth offending team (YOT).
The YOT has been working with the city’s archaeological trust for the past three years to help get troublesome young people back on track.
By rolling up their sleeves and helping excavate the city centre site, the young people are able to learn vital life skills such as following instructions from others, patience and perseverance, while at the same time helping make amends to the community for the harm their wrongdoing has caused.
John was invited to meet young people at Hungate on Tuesday by the YOT after earlier addressing the YorSafer event at the Friend’s Meeting House in Friargate.
The event, which also featured a speech by York Council’s director of Communities and Neighbourhoods, Sally Burns, aimed to renew the local partnerships which work to reduce youth crime in York. Attendees included representatives from the North Yorkshire Criminal Justice Board, the Safer York Partnership and the ‘YorOK’ Children’s Trust.
John said:
“I am delighted to visit York and to meet colleagues from other organisations who are committed to making York a safer place to live.
“Reparation work is extremely valuable both to young people and the wider community. Not only does it go some way to repairing the damage caused to the community by the young person’s actions, but it also helps offenders learn important skills which will assist them to go on to lead, meaningful, crime-free lives.
“It is innovative pro
jects such as these which contribute to encouraging falls in the numbers of local young people committing first time offences and a recent drop in re-offending rates”
Simon Page, head of York Youth Offending Services, said:
"We have made great progress in delivering a robust youth justice service in York and cutting the reoffending rates of those coming before the courts.
“Moving forward, we will be looking at more local approaches to tackle youth offending. Strong partnerships are the key to continuing success.”
Notes to editors
- The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) oversees the youth justice system in England and Wales. We work to prevent offending and reoffending by children and young people under the age of 18, and to ensure that custody for them is safe, secure, and addresses the causes of their offending behaviour.
- Specifically, we advise the Secretary of State for Justice on the operation of, and standards for, the youth justice system; monitor the performance of the youth justice system; purchase places for, and place, children and young people remanded or sentenced to custody; identify and promote effective practice; make grants to local authorities or other bodies to support the development of effective practice; commission research and publish information.
- Reparation orders are designed to help young offenders understand the consequences of their offending and take responsibility for their behaviour. They require the young person to repair the harm caused by their offence either directly to the victim or indirectly to the community.
