OFFENDERS in North Yorkshire have worked for thousands of hours in their communities after being sentenced for criminal offences.

Humberside Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company (HLNY CRC), which is responsible for supervising offenders on Community Payback and ensuring they comply with their sentence, says 58,916 hours have been delivered in the past six months alone.

“With the national wage standing at £7.83 that equates to more than £461,000 of work delivered,” said a spokesman.

“Those ordered to take on unpaid Community Payback work participate in a range of manual tasks, including removing graffiti, litter picking, clearing parks and cemeteries, renovating buildings and work in charity shops.

“Magistrates or judges can sentence offenders to carry out anything from 40 to 300 hours of unpaid work as part of their order.”

Martin Davies, chief executive of HLNY CRC, said: “Community payback provides a tough, effective and visible punishment requiring people to undertake challenging work while giving something back to communities where they live.”