The Government's Respect Action Plan must not lose sight of the causes of crime. Everyone wants to live in a society based on respect, including young people.
4Children hopes the government will take this opportunity to focus on helping young people to fulfil their potential through prevention rather than punitive, short-term measures. More than a million young people in England hang around the streets every day with nothing to do and 70 per cent of young people say this is one reason teenagers drift into crime.
They need access to safe and interesting places to go. When this happens, crime levels reduce.
A recent interim report from the national evaluation of the Positive Activities for Young People programme shows that providing young people with places to go and things to do has a positive effect. Of those involved in the programme, 71 percent said they had learnt new things and 70 percent said they got on better with adults. The report also highlights assertions that creating things for young people to do has helped to reduce crime and create community cohesion.
Supporting parents through intervention, not punishment, has also been highly effective in reducing crime. In the US, several states have used federal funds to provide intensive family therapy, resulting in a reduction of re-arrest rates by as much as 70 percent. The programme saves money with a return of $29 in reduced crime, prison and victim costs for every $1 (about 56p) invested.
It is essential that we seriously invest in supporting young people.
Projects such as 4Children's Make Space campaign, which aims to provide a national network of contemporary-style youth clubs, can help to foster respect for and from young people.
The Make Space model works because young people are involved in making decisions about the clubs, thus building mutual trust and respect.
