CHILDREN as young as 11 have been taken on a visit to Doncaster Prison in an attempt to steer them away from getting involved in crime.
South Yorkshire Police set up the visit, taking along six boys from Doncaster aged between 11 and 14 who had been identified as at risk of starting to offend.
None of those involved has yet been involved in crime, but they were regarded as being a
t risk of first-time offending and all have been excluded from school, either temporarily or permanently.
That put them into contact with the authorities and the visit was set up by police from the Adwick safer neighbourhood team with Doncaster Prison and the Youth Inclusion Programme.
The objective was to give them a lesson in the harsh realities of the consequences of getting involved in offending and the trip included a meeting with prison director Brian Anderson along with a talk from a warden and the personal assistant to the director.
The boys, all from north Doncaster, were also given the chance to speak to some inmates to learn about the effects of prison life from their perspective.
Pc Lee Dodds accompanied the boys on the three-hour visit and he said: "This is the first visit of its kind for youngsters of this age. The staff and inmates spoke with our group, which was extremely eye-opening, informative and interesting. To hear from inmates first hand about life in prison had a profound effect on our young visitors and was valuable for the youngsters to gain first-hand knowledge of what a life of crime can lead to."
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