A taste of justice in the raw for wayward youngsters

But these impositions, seemingly draconian at first glance, are just two of the measures being used to steer wayward young people from trouble under a groundbreaking scheme to cut crime.

The Respect programme gives young offenders in North Lincolnshire the chance to avoid being reprimanded – and therefore escape getting a criminal record – for petty offences like theft and vandalism.

They must first agree to carry out community work, however, with tasks ranging from tidying churchyards and clearing snow from pensioners’ homes to decorating retirement homes and helping village gardening projects.

Offenders must also agree to attend an awareness seminar, where they write letters of apology to their victims and learn more about how crime impacts on society.

The project ends with them being led from the cells at Scunthorpe Police Station to a mock court hearing, presided over by a real magistrates’ bench, during which they must promise to stay out of trouble for six months by signing an acceptable behaviour contract.

Parents are encouraged to attend the court hearings, and youth offending teams visit the offenders’ families to determine whether they also need support.

Respect is overseen by Humberside Police, together with North Lincolnshire Council officers, drug intervention workers and court staff.

Available only to youths aged 10 to 16 who have never been in trouble before, it has led to a dramatic fall in reoffending rates and may soon be adopted in other parts of the country.

Project manager Sgt James Main, of Humberside Police, said: “I sincerely believe each young person deserves a chance to be diverted from the criminal justice system upon their first minor offence. This by no means is the easy option. A simple reprimand for their offence is a telling off at the police station.

“This system sees us engaging with the young person and all the partner agencies, over a fair number of hours and gives us a far better chance of directing them away from reoffending.”

More than 100 young people have taken part in the programme since it was introduced last year, and only seven have committed further offences.

This compares favourably with police figures for 2009, when more than a quarter of young people given reprimands went on to reoffend.

Feedback from Respect participants has been overwhelmingly positive. A police survey revealed that all victims, 90 per cent of parents and even 80 per cent of young offenders were in favour of the scheme.

Sgt Main said the programme had been so successful that it was being monitored by other police teams in the Yorkshire region and beyond.

“Other divisions within Humberside Police are looking at it, and we are hopeful that other forces might look at it as good practice as well.”

Children who commit offences like criminal damage, theft, minor assault or being drunk and disorderly can ordinarily expect to escape with a reprimand if it is the first time they have broken the law.

That reprimand remains on their record for life, however, potentially damaging their chances of finding a job as an adult.

“A criminal record doesn’t just affect your job prospects,” Sgt Main said, “it can affect college and university applications as well.

“Even for minor things which people don’t consider, such as travelling to the US, you can face problems if you have a record.”

North Lincolnshire Council’s Cabinet member for adult and children’s services, Coun Rob Waltham, said: “By bringing all the agencies together and working with parents, we can see positive results and help prevent young people from offending again.

“In North Lincolnshire we are committed to tackling young offenders head on and giving peace of mind and reassurance to victims.

“We are also giving hope to many young people who would otherwise quite easily have continued offending had it not been for the Respect initiative.”

For more details about the Respect programme, follow Sgt Main on Twitter @SgtJamesMain or contact him by e-mail at [email protected]