Youths who break into city centre buildings or spray graffiti on shops and walls will be forced to clean up the mess they have left behind.
Nottinghamshire Police said this will send out a clear message to teenagers who think they can come into the city and wreak havoc without any consequences.
This is all part of Op Reclaim, a partnership approach to improve the city centre and relentlessly target those who cause the most harm to residents, shoppers and visitors.
The Immediate Justice programme ensures people committing anti-social behaviour and low-level offences are made to quickly repair the harm they have caused, often within days of the offence taking place.
Since its inception in January 2024, there have been more than 1,500 referrals to the scheme, with offenders delivering hundreds of hours of community payback activity.
On Friday, 8 May, a cohort of young people responsible for spraying the city with graffiti and causing havoc for local businesses were tasked with cleaning up their mess.
This included removing graffiti tags from city walls.
On Sunday, 12 May, two teenagers were also caught for offences which included breaking into buildings, including the former Debenhams, Castle Heights on Maid Marian Way and the Federation Church in Castle Gate.
On each occasion, the teenagers wanted to gain access to the roof of the property and left behind a trail of destruction, including breaking glass doors and spray-painting CCTV cameras.
Now both will face the Immediate Justice programme and will return to the places they attempted to destroy with their reckless behaviour.
Their parents were also visited to explain that if their children’s behaviour continues, it will ultimately be they who pay the price.
They have also been faced with significant restrictions, which include not entering the city wearing a face covering or being in possession of paints or anything capable of defacing property.
City Commander Superintendent Chris Pearson said:
“Young people might think that being arrested is a badge of honour, something they can post on social media to look big in front of their friends.
“It is very different when they are told they must return to the place they defaced and clean up their mess or pick up the cost, which will ultimately fall on their parents and guardians.
“Is that how they want to spend their time? For a few minutes of reckless behaviour, they will be put through the Immediate Justice programme and will spend hours cleaning up the mess they made.
“And it won’t stop there. We will put measures in place which restrict their activity in the city centre. This can and will include taking away their balaclavas and making sure they cannot wear one in the city again.
“The general public have had enough of your behaviour, and so have we. That is why Op Reclaim is vitally important: a partnership approach to not only educate young people and support families, but also take strong action so that Nottingham city centre becomes a ‘no-go’ area for behaviour like this.”
Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner Gary Godden said:
“One of the things people tell me time and time again is that they want to see visible action taken when anti-social behaviour happens in their community.
“Immediate Justice is all about swift, visible consequences. Offenders are not only being held accountable for their behaviour but are also giving something back to the very communities they’ve impacted.”
