Probation Trust meets targets in fight to cut crime (From York Press)

Probation Trust meets targets in fight to cut crime

8:47am Saturday 18th August 2012 in News

IT aims to protect the public by punishing and rehabilitating criminals – now the York and North Yorkshire Probation Trust’s annual report has revealed just how many offenders it dealt with last year.

Staff supervised 3,218 new community orders and produced 2,503 pre-sentence reports for the courts – 98.9 per cent of them on time.

Eighty offenders completed a domestic violence programme, and 144 completed a general offender behaviour programme. Meanwhile, 97.5 per cent of victims of serious sexual or violent offenders were contacted by staff within eight weeks of sentencing.

A trust spokeswoman said the report had confirmed that it met key national targets during the year.

She said: “This is a tribute to the commitment and professionalism of a dedicated staff group, passionate about the work that they do.”

She said the accredited programmes for offenders were designed to change the way they thought and consequently behaved.

“Bringing offenders to justice means punishing them, protecting the public and deterring others – but it also means helping them break out of the criminal cycle,” she said.

“If the trust can achieve this, there will be fewer offenders – which means fewer victims, and safer communities.”

She said a particular highlight of the year had been a project run by the trust, City of York Council , North Yorkshire Police and the Safer York Partnership named TAAGY (Taking Action Against Graffiti in York), which had achieved a commendation at this year’s Butler Trust Awards, with staff receiving their certificates from Princess Anne at Buckingham Palace.

Trust chairman Ken Bellamy said: “The considerable achievements set out in the report are a tribute to the valued skills, commitment and professional approach of our managers and staff.”

Chief executive Pete Brown said the report demonstrated that, despite competing demands against a backdrop of change, the trust had continued to pursue and achieve high standards of quality.