News In Focus
24 June 2009
Community sentence funding not enough
Sacro, the voluntary organisation working for community justice, has welcomed the Government’s pledge of an additional £5.5m to support community service projects across Scotland.
But it says there needs to be significant additional funding made available to implement the new community payback orders.
The extra resources, announced yesterday, are being allocated to allow local authorities to employ more staff to support community service projects – and help clear the current backlog of cases in some areas which is seeing offenders wait for weeks to start their community service orders.
Sacro says it is imperative that proper funding is put in place to implement the new system of community payback orders, which are intended to replace the current system by offering sentencers a viable and effective way of dealing with offenders currently being given custodial sentences of six months or less.
“This is a rare opportunity to make significant inroads in dealing with the ‘revolving door’ of offending and reoffending in our communities,” said Sacro.
“These sentences must receive the resources they require or we risk a return to ineffective custodial sentences, overcrowded prisons and a more dangerous society in Scotland.”