EUGangs Workshop

Introduction Today we will be looking at some of the examples of projects and initiatives which have been developed to work effectivelyt between enforcement and support agencies to address anti‐social behaviour and crime committed by young people. Some of these have been proven to contribute to reducing offending and re‐offending rates among young people by earlier prevention, negotiable and non‐negotiable support and appropriate enforcement and punishment.

Aims of the session By the end of the session you will have a deeper understanding of the following in both their previous and current incarnations : Reparation. Street‐Based Teams. After School Patrols (ASPs). Family Intervention Project (FIP). Triage in custody suites.

Reparation Reparation orders are given to young people convicted of a crime and involve them working in the community to repair the harm they’ve caused. The evaluation found the following: Young people don’t always understand the positive aspects of reparation and why they are doing it. Young people may gain more benefit from activities completed in their own communities or related to their individual offence. There is only a small evidence base that suggests reparation leads to a change in certain behaviours such as alcohol consumption. The direct benefits of reparation are difficult to analyse but there is evidence of favourable effects such as the acquisition of new skills.

What the young people said about the ways in which reparation had helped them improve… “I didn’t think I would work as a team but I did” “Communicating with older people; usually I would only speak to older people within my family” “Yes it has helped me appreciate what people do in the community to keep it nice and clean”

Street Based Teams Street Based Teams Street Based Teams engage with young people in the Kensington and Fairfield areas of Liverpool and comprise of professionals employed by the Fire Service. Their main objectives are to: Give young people information about relevant local activities e.g. football sessions, summer activities. Provide young people with information about support services such as CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably). Talk to them about harmful or problem behaviours such as starting fires, using alcohol or drugs etc. Offer skills and career advice and signing them up to programmes led by the Fire Service and other agencies.

A mix of findings… A mix of findings… Young people’s perception of SBTs ‘Keep us Safe’ ‘Look out for you’ ‘Nice & friendly’ ‘They always want to know what we’re up to’ ‘If you’re in trouble they will help you’ STB referred activities STBs only signpost activities, not develop or deliver them. The majority of young people questioned said they had not taken part in a referred activity. General Knowledge & awareness of the SBTs by local residents was poor. Incidents of ASB did decrease after the implementation of SBTs but this could be part of a general downward trend and wider policing strategies.

Family Intervention Family Intervention The Family Intervention Project engages with families involved in gang membership or knife and gun crime where traditional interventions have failed by getting to the roots of problem behaviour and providing the intensive support needed for positive change. The evaluation found the following: In general families were appreciative of the help and believed it to be a positive experience. For all families evaluated a considerable improvement was recorded that owed to their involvement with FIP including a reduction in homelessness and levels of ASB. Multi-agency working is an integral part of FIP and this type of communication and data sharing works well.

Triage in custody suites Triage in custody suites This programme offers alternatives to a custodial sentence by engaging with young people in custody and getting them to think about their behaviour and the impact of crime on themselves and others. The evaluation found: Triage had helped a very small proportion of young people to think about how their behaviour affects others and to think twice about committing a similar offence. The majority of Police Officers believed that Triage had the ability to deter young people from committing similar offences. There was some indication that the number of 1 st time entrants to the CJS had decreased in Liverpool over the period of implementation.

What did young people and the Police have to say about Triage.. It makes you understand what to do and not to do (YP) It has given me a second chance to finish my schooling and further education. I am very sorry for what I have done (YP) Triage is an ideal alternative for juveniles who are only going to come to Police attentions once! (PO) I only see positive outcomes for young people entering the Triage System (PO) They spoke to me as an adult and not a child so I could relate to what they were telling me (YP)

Supporting Young Victims A stream of the YCAP funding was used to extend the support available for young victims of crime and went to 3 strands:  WAVES Alt Valley (Witness & Victim Encouragement Support) to work in collaboration with the Safe School Partnership.  WAVES City & North to work in conjunction with North Liverpool Academy School  Liverpool Youth Offending Service (YOS)

What was the funding used for? £ Promotion of WAVES A poster on crime for young people Training for profession al staff A leaflet on carrying knives Link WAVES to SHARP

EU Directive The EU Directive 2012/29/EU acts to ensure that victims: are recognised and treated with respect and dignity; are protected from further victimisation and intimidation from the offender and from distress when taking part in the justice system; receive appropriate support throughout proceedings and have access to justice; have appropriate access to compensation. This directive that establishes minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime must be implemented by all EU member states no later than 16 th November 2015.

Scenario… Scenario… It’s the height of Summer at approximately 21:30, so beginning to get dark. A group of young people are gathered outside a local shopping precinct, the off- licence is the only shop still open. It is obvious that some of the young people within the group are no older than approximately 12 or 13; some of them are drinking alcohol and smoking and one of the boys repeatedly keeps accepting something from one of the older members of the group which he then puts in his pocket and disappears round the corner, returning moments later to the same member to hand something back. There are a few girls in the group and one of the younger ones is wearing clothes that expose her chest and bottom and is flirting with two of the older boys who are taking pictures of her on their mobile phone and keep pulling her towards them to touch and kiss her. One of the younger children’s Dad’s arrives and rolls and shares a joint with the group.