Justice Minister today visited Mullaghmore and
Castleview Community Resource Centre (MACCA) in Omagh.
A longstanding partner of the Probation Board for Northern
Ireland (PBNI), the Mullaghmore facility includes a community
garden, eco centre and safe play area as well as allotments for
hosting Men's Shed, conservation volunteers and local college
groups.
During the visit the Minister met with PBNI Community Service
staff and saw at first hand the restorative element of community
service taking place.
Minister Long said: "It was impressive to hear from a
number of people who had been sentenced to a Community Service
Order and are making reparation for the harm they have caused by
undertaking unpaid work in the community. Working alongside
probation they are being held to account but also supported to
make changes to their lives.
“Community service is a practical and visible way for
people who have offended to give back, learn new skills and
become rehabilitated within the local community.
“Importantly in some cases, victims of crime can also
have a say in the type of work that people sentenced to community
service carry out.”
Amanda Stewart Chief Executive PBNI, said: “We currently
supervise approximately 1,000 people subject to Orders with a
Community Service element across Northern Ireland. Three out of
four people who complete a Community Service Order do not go on
to reoffend within a year.
"Those who undertake community service also tell us that it helps
them develop skills which enable them to seek future employment
and helps them move away from criminality. This sentence provides
important opportunities for people to become rehabilitated and
desist from crime.”
As part of a series of engagements in Omagh, the Justice Minister
also visited Omagh PSNI station where she met officers at the
forefront of local policing. In a meeting with Omagh District and
Solicitors Associations she discussed the Enabling Access to
Justice (EAJD) Reform Programme. And later the same day the
Justice Minister met with Peter and Niamh Dolan, whose son Enda
was knocked down and killed in a drink-driving accident, to
outline plans to introduce the Sentencing Bill before the end of
the year.
Notes to Editors
- Probation supervises community-based sentences, where a
person is sentenced by the court to an Order that is to be
completed in the community. There are a range of community-based
sentences, some of which have a Community Service element where
the person under supervision must complete a specified number of
hours within the community, completing unpaid work for the
benefit of local communities across Northern Ireland.
- Community Service is one of the most successful court
sentences in terms of preventing reoffending. Three out of four
people who complete community service do not re-offend within one
year. It is a visible and practical method of ensuring those
being supervised pay something back to the community.
- Community Service helps those being supervised to develop
practical and social skills to help them avoid crime in the
future. Community Service is effective in reducing reoffending
and benefiting the community.
