1. Serious Group Offending The role of London CRC Young Adults; Serious Group Offending Restorative Justice Unit working with the Community
Delphine Duff- London CRC
Jennifer McDermott- Cassandra Learning Centre
Diedre Johnson- Training and Consultancy
Middlesex University Conference 5th September 2014

2. Serious Group Offending
London Probation Trust coined the phrase “ Serious Group Offending”- to encompass all aspects of the offending and related behaviours and harms associated with gangs.
(accepted within CRC Serious Group Offending; young Adult and Restorative Justice Unit 2014)

3. Serious Group Offending; Young Person and Restorative Justice Unit rationale
Long term developing problem in London
Concentration of offenders aged 18-24
Need to identify and build on work already achieved

4. London Gang Profile 3,495 gang members – 224 gangs
2,480 (71%) live in community – 1000 in custody, 300 subject to judicial orders
70% aged yrs old
97% male
77% BME
( Trident Gang Crime Command 2014)

5. Pan London Serious Group Offending (SGO) Caseload Profile
1,827 cases across both NPS and CRC organisations
Currently 616 cases (34%) CRC-managed
CRC service user overall age range: 17yrs – 47yrs
(Predominant age range is18-27yrs. This accounts for 531 service users)
610 Males (99%); Females 6 (1%)
Ethnicity breakdown – please see table in next slide

6. Pan London Serious Group Offending (SGO) Caseload Profile
The pre-dominant ethnicity
types Black African and Black Caribbean
account for over half
(55.5%)
of total ethnicities
represented

7. Risk Management Considerations
Demographic profiling
Hotspot Areas
Cross Border Tensions
Housing
Local Rivalries
Offending Profile
Crimenogenic vs Protective factors
Information Sharing

8. Hierarchy of Needs

9. What will the unit be involved in?
Developing SGO SPOC roles and responsibilities
Develop and Review London Gang Profile
Co work SGO cases
Devise programmes and other initiatives
Co ordinate local responses to SGO issues
Develop “Best Practice” toolkit for staff

10. What we will be involved in cont...
SGO Unit Interventions:
CRC Intranet
Gang Screening Tool
Gang registration - DELIUS
SGO Guidance for staff
Pan London Mapping gang profile
1-2-1 programmes
Exit Programme – available in Greenwich; Lewisham; Croydon; Hackney;
Restorative Justice- being designed to address SGO related conflict

11. EXIT- The Intensive Alternative to Custody Opportunity for Young Men 18-25

12. Background
London Probation Trust had a young adult population of 6159 offenders which represented 15.1% of the caseload.
Research shows that programmes that keep people out of custody are both beneficial to the offender and cost effective to the state. This is particularly the case for young adults who have been shown to respond best to intensive programme. Mentoring has been shown to be effective in reducing crime.
EXIT programme was coordinated centrally through the LPT SGO unit- now transferred to CRC Unit
LPT took a strategic response to the issues of this group and ensure that the organisation provides the best interventions to address the risk

13. What is Exit?
An intensive order which provides structure and enables a young person to develop commitment and motivation a model should be flexible, responsive, reflect local needs and therefore tailored specifically for the individual person
In addition, all service users will be provided with individual mentoring and access to social pathways to promote and develop life skills and support to achieve full re-integration into the community.
Currently being piloted in 4 Boroughs: Greenwich, Lewisham, Hackney and Croydon extended from November to - Camden and Islington; Hammersmith and Fulham; Kensington and Chelsea
Aim is to roll it out to to six more boroughs:
Lambeth
Kensington &Cheleas
Hammersmith and Fulham
And
Camden and Islington

14. Who is it aimed at? The Exit programme targets male offenders
Aged 18-25
Must be facing immediate custody
There is credible intelligence that they are either gang affiliated or at significant risk of becoming gang involved.

15. What does it involve....
The Exit Programme has three elements and must include at least one Punishment Requirement and the Supervision Rehabilitation Requirement.
Punishment
Specialist Intensive Community Payback (min of 15 hours a week, no more than 120 hours duration)
Attendance Centres
Control
Exclusion Zone
Curfew
Rehabilitation
Supervision
Programme
Specified Activity and/ or referral to community organisation

16. TO DATE 60 young men engaged in EXIT
5 young men known to have “exited” gang lifestyle
3 young men now volunteering with Social Pathways
A number have greatly improved employability status
EXIT received Howard League Award
Research findings will give picture

17. Contact Details
Contact Persons: Strategic Managers : Andrew Hillas and Patsy Wollaston Assistant Chief Officers
Operations Manager : Delphine Duff Senior Probation Officer
Location: Mitre House, Borough High Street

18. CASSANDRA LEARNING CENTRE18

19. Who is Cassandra Learning Centre and what we do?
We are a charity that addresses domestic abuse in adolescent and young adult relationships (aged yrs) through:
Raising awareness of domestic abuse amongst young people;
Educating young people about healthy relationships;
Raising awareness of domestic abuse amongst services and professionals working with young people. 19

20. What is Domestic Violence?
According to a government definition, domestic violence is
"Any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality.“
But this doesn’t even account for teenage DV. Other definitions, that do, include: sexual exploitation and group affiliated behaviour 20

21. Grim facts… For every hour, as many as 115 children are abused
90% of children from violent homes witness their fathers beating their mothers
Children in homes where violence occurs are physically abused or neglected at a rate 1500% higher than the national average
Nationally 75% of battered women say their children are physically or sexually abused
More than half of the children abductions in this country occur within the context of domestic violence
More than two women a week are killed as a result of domestic violence. 21

22. Sexual Exploitation
Sexual exploitation of children and young people under 18 involves exploitative situations, contexts and relationships where young people (or a third person or persons) receive ‘something’ (e.g. food, accommodation, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, affection, gifts, money) as a result of them performing, and/or another or others performing on them, sexual activities. Department for Education 22

23. Effects
………is a particularly disturbing form of abuse with terrible consequences for victims. The majority are forced into prostitution, alcohol and or drug addiction; they often become involved in street crime, lead lives as domestic servants and suffer other forms of exploitation 23

24. A cause for concern
2012 Barnardos services worked with 1,452 children and young people who had been sexually exploited.
sexual exploitation of girls in gangs is a very, very, very serious problem.  There is no distinction between upbringing, age, ethnicity, social class or ability.
 Sex is a weapon just like guns and knives, says child safety expert (Professor Jenny Pearce) 24

25. Quotes …
These girls don’t tell, they don’t complain, they don’t report to the police. It’s just what happens.
Once a girl has had sex with a gang member, forced or otherwise, as far as the other boys are concerned, she has no right to refuse sex under any circumstances ever again.
Girls are used, abused and discarded like a piece of meat.”
13-year-old boys raping 18-year-old girls. Any boy, whatever age, even a 12-year-old, is above a girl in a gang. 25

26. Case Study 1
“It was only once we moved in together and I was invested in the relationship that he began to become violent. It took all the support of my friends, family, the police and a woman’s refuge to get me out,”
She met her then boyfriend when she was just 18 years old. Often young people are unaware their relationship is abusive and instead considers it a sign of affection when their partner becomes obsessive and controlling, leading to abuse in all its form.

27. Case Study 1
“It was only once we moved in together and I was invested in the relationship that he began to become violent. It took all the support of my friends, family, the police and a woman’s refuge to get me out,”
She met her then boyfriend when she was just 18 years old. Often young people are unaware their relationship is abusive and instead considers it a sign of affection when their partner becomes obsessive and controlling, leading to abuse in all its form.

28. Case Study 3
I was referred to Cassandra Learning Centre my College tutor. At the time she made the referral I was contemplating suicide as an escape from the humiliation of my family.
The emotional abuse was constant and unbearable, they treated me like a leaper, and I became distressed and isolated from my friends.
My college work began to suffer as a result; I became homeless for a short period:
I had Social workers but that wasn’t working either.
I first met with someone from Cassandra Learning Centre who became my support worker: She drew up an action plan with me: She re-assured me that she would do everything she could for my voice to be heard.
I was referred for one to one counselling, until I was in a much better place. Cassandra Learning Centre advocates on my behalf every step of the way:
They faced challenges from my family but they never left me. I have been in my flat now, for two years: It has not easy, I am coping thanks the help and support of this organisation. 
I am still in contact with the organisation. They still pick me up when I fall.
They work with young men: I was 17 years and I was not doing well.
Thank you Cassandra Learning Centre.  28

29. D Johnson Training & Consultancy Ltd
Working in Partnership to deliver a Black Self Development/Identity Programme to serious group offenders in HM Prisons

30. Rationale for BSD Programme
People from BME communities are over-represented at almost all stages of the criminal justice process, disproportionately targeted by the police, more likely to be imprisoned and more likely to be imprisoned for longer than white British people. (IRR)
21,543 prisoners, was from a minority ethnic group. Out of the British national prison population, 11% are black and 6% are Asian. Overall black prisoners account for the largest number of minority ethnic prisoners (50%). At the end of June 2012, 29% of minority ethnic prisoners were foreign nationals.
According to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, there is now greater disproportionality in the number of black people in prisons in the UK than in the United States. (Prison Reform Trust).

31. The BSD Programme
The Black Self Development Programme started in 2001 as a result of a successful 2 year pilot ,delivered in partnership with London Probation Service; buisness partners and NGOs, for black offenders under supervision or on Licence.
Subsequently the programme was delivered to young people engaged with 11 youth offending teams across central London.

32. Prisons delivered in HMP Brixton. HMP Bullingdon HMP Huntercombe.
HMP Aylesbury
HMP Pentonville
HMP The Mount
Successfully achieving 75% in retention and qualifications.

33. Theoretical Underpinning
The BSD programme ‘s components are informed by humanistic, control and experiential learning theories.
The Project is unique in its approach – using an accredited cognitive Social and Life Skills culturally based programme. It explores issues of identity, aspirations, motivation, discrimination and black history.
Written from a black perspective, the programme has the advantages of re-educating, motivating and challenging black offenders to redress their offending behaviour, explore their culture, experiences, attitude and lifestyle in order for them to develop a positive self image and move progressively towards disengaging from criminal activities. The embedded Skills for Life component of the programme is accredited by the London Open College Network.

34. Some of the contents covered
Knowing my roots
Taking charge of my past
Black people’s migration to Britain
Accepting responsibility for my offending
How to change my behaviour
Understanding my family/community.
Sexual health and drug/alcohol abuse issues

35. Exercise Terry’s Story
Case Study

36. So......the answers are in the questions we ask ourselves and others...
How do we define Community?
What are our expectations?
How do we engage “Communities in our work”?
How can we all work together to effectively address SGO- gang related activity

37. Thank You