As Armistice Day approaches, offenders on Community Payback schemes are helping to restore and repair war memorials in the capital as part of the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson’s, ongoing drive to increase visible justice for victims of crime.
More than 1.3 million hours of Community Payback were carried out in London last year with offenders undertaking between 40 and 300 hours of unpaid work, including clearing wasteland and removing graffiti, in order to pay back the community for the crimes they have committed.
The Mayor has committed to increasing the number of offenders visibly repaying the community for their crimes and improve confidence in the criminal justice system. Currently 82 per cent of the community orders or licenses issued in the capital are successfully completed. Working with London Probation and local authorities, the Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime (MOPAC) aims to increase this to 92 per cent by 2016.
Through Safer Neighbourhood Boards, currently being set up in every borough in the capital, the Mayor is also working to give Londoners, especially victims of crime, more of a say over the kind of work being carried out by these offenders, ensuring that the work they are undertaking is tougher and more intensive.
In Waltham Forest Community Payback offenders have cleaned five First World War memorials in the borough. The Mayor is encouraging other boroughs to do the same and have those sentenced to Community Payback clean up war memorials in their area.
The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime Stephen Greenhalgh who visited one of the war memorials in Waltham Forest to see the work being carried out by Community Payback offenders said: “Our aim is to make justice in the community more visible and purposeful. As we approach Armistice Day in this, the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, it is right that we are making offenders repay their local community by restoring areas of remembrance in commemoration of those who gave their lives for our country. Working with MOPAC, Waltham Forest has set a precedent for the capital in driving this scheme forward and we encourage other boroughs to follow suit.”
Notes to editors
- The Mayor’s commitment to increase to 92 per cent the number of offenders successfully completing Community Payback in London by 2016 is set out in his Police and Crime Plan. The figure currently stands at 82 per cent. https://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/policing-crime/police-and-crime-plan
- Community Payback is the replacement for Community Service, also more recently called Community Punishment. Courts are given the power to sentence offenders of certain crimes to undertake between 40 and 300 hours of Community Payback. It is unpaid and demanding work that is aimed at giving something to local communities and forcing offenders to repay the community for the wrong they have done. .
- MOPAC are helping to establish a Safer Neighbourhood Board (SNB) in every London borough, which will set local policing and crime priorities, monitor police performance and confidence. SNBs have an input into local Community Payback schemes, giving the public and in particular victims, the ability to determine the tasks that offenders undertake as payback for their crimes.
- The five memorials in Waltham Forest that have been cleaned are Kings Head Hill/Ridgway, Memorial Park, Whipps Cross, Coronation Gardens and Harrow Green. All memorials in Waltham Forest will have cleaned and maintenance works carried out before Sunday.
- Community Payback is delivered by Serco which currently has the contract for 32 London Boroughs.