Crawley MP, Henry Smith, has welcomed new proposals from Conservative Justice Secretary, Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP, to help young offenders turn their backs on crime.
The new plans, published yesterday, explore a radically different approach. Transforming Youth Custody: Putting Education at the Heart of Detention aims to deliver value for the taxpayer, reduce reoffending and set young offenders on the path to a better life.
Welcoming the announcement, Henry commented:
“Locking up teenage offenders costs us taxpayers a fortune — about £100,000, or even up to £200,000 in some cases – and yet over the past decade the youth re-offending rate has soared to a staggering 73 per cent. That is just storing up more problems for the future, with young lives going unsalvaged, and more victims suffering as a result.
“We’ve got to have a real push on educating young offenders, as well as detaining them. Many of them struggle to read or write, and many have been detached from any sort of proper education for months or even years.
“It’s absolutely vital that we tackle re-offending. If we can succeed in turning troubled young people away from a life of crime, and cut reoffending rates, that will mean less crime, fewer victims and safer communities. By putting education at the heart of the approach we can help young offenders to get on in life and make a contribution to society.
“I urge local youth charities, education experts and other interested parties across Crawley to read the consultation document make submissions so that the views from our area can form part of the policy making process.”
Justice Secretary, Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP, said:
“We cannot go on just doing more of the same, pouring more money into a system doesn't work in the hope of a different outcome. That doesn’t make any sense to the taxpayer, or to the young people who we should be trying to get back on the straight and narrow.”
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