A service that aims to deliver immediate justice to people who have committed minor crimes has been extended.
The immediate justice scheme launched in January 2024, and as of mid-February this year, 1,437 offenders had been referred to the service.
Reoffending rates have declined, according to new data, and the service is now operating at full capacity – with around 32 offenders helping out in communities across Nottinghamshire every week.
It had been funded by the Home Office as part of a pilot, but the stream of money from the Government has since come to an end.
Nottinghamshire’s police commissioner, Gary Godden (Lab), has chosen to continue funding the scheme through the use of reserves and other local funding streams.
All other nine pilot areas have stopped their local schemes following the end of the funding, meaning it is now unique to the county.
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The scheme was discussed at a police and crime panel meeting on Monday (March 23).
Angela Kandola, the deputy crime commissioner, said: “For first-time offenders, everyone is naïve at one time in life, and they have made those mistakes.
“What we are doing with this is giving them that opportunity to have another chance, and it is working very successfully.
“They are learning a lot, then they are going to different schools and going into further education, so this is something that is really, really positive.
“We have all made mistakes in our lives at a younger age, and if we can give those opportunities to those individuals to go on the right path, this is what we are doing.”
The aim of the scheme was to address the perception that minor offences often go unpunished or are dealt with too slowly by the police and court system.
It introduced fast, proportionate consequences, such as unpaid reparative work, community clean-up tasks, or participation in educational programmes.
Offenders for crimes such as vandalism, shop theft, graffiti, public disorder, or drug-related nuisance can be referred to the programme.
During the meeting, a representative for the Office for the Police and Crime Commissioner said they were looking to develop a women-only immediate justice service to provide “safe, tailored support that is gender-responsive”.
Among the women who completed immediate justice, none reoffended within 12 months, and reoffending among young people under 25 fell by three-quarters.
Overall, reoffending rates were 52 per cent lower among those who completed immediate justice compared to traditional out-of-court resolutions.
Rates of reoffending were 74 per cent lower for those who completed the programme compared to those who were referred but did not complete the programme.
It is anticipated the scheme will save the taxpayer up to £266,000 by the end of the current financial year, which ends on March 31.
Mansfield’s mayor, Andy Abrahams, said he was disappointed funding had disappeared and added: “I can certainly endorse the scheme as we were part of the pilot in Mansfield.
“Quite often, the people who had carried out the graffiti or small-scale offences actually did the shift in the area where they committed the crime, and that was really valued by the local communities.
“It broke down the barriers between the perpetrators and people living in the area. Are you trying to align it so that they carry out the work in those areas?”
The OPCC representative said: “Every effort is made to ensure the localities in which the offences have taken place are the areas in which reparations occur, but it is not always possible in terms of the best use of resources and the infrastructure that needs to be put around that whole process.”
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