PCC Kim McGuinness: The North East’s only dedicated Violence Reduction Unit sets out plan to cut crime.

The Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit is taking a radical new approach to combat violent crime in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, as it embarks on its fourth year.

The Unit will work with young people and troubled families to make it clear there is an alternative to violence and crime.

This comes as levels of serious violent crime and knife enabled offences increased during November before seeing a 13% decline in December.

Now, Police Commissioner Kim McGuinness has set out how the specialist unit will help fight crime and tackle the effects of poverty on hard hit families  in the North East.

As well as building on the positive work to date, the plan for the next year of action will include:

• Engage young people to divert them from offending and reduce their risk of being involved in crime.
• Focus on the continued importance of community-based interventions, involving individuals with lived experience in specialist help centres.
• Work direct with the whole family to tackle issues of violence, through community-based interventions.
• Target interventions in areas of most need.  

Some of the fantastic results, through vital mentoring programmes like YOLO, have seen 48 young people with reduced risk of committing serious and violent crime, 66 young people no longer on the police radar and 18 young people reporting increased feelings of safety.

The Violence Reduction Unit continues to make a positive impact on the individuals it supports. With early intervention as a priority, its dedicated education team have delivered 272 awareness sessions to 5622 young people in areas of most need, over the last few months.

Over 800 frontline staff have now received specialist awareness training to better support young people on the cusp of, or involved in knife crime. Staff feel they are able to better support the young people in their care thanks to the information on spotting the signs, the laws around carrying and using a knife, and the support services available.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuinness said: “No-one should be become the victim of violent crime. That’s why it’s so important for the Violence Reduction Unit to intervene and deter individuals from crime at the earliest opportunity. We cannot just arrest our way out the problem – instead we must continue to educate young people, upskill our professionals and provide that vital support for those individuals and families in most need”.

She added, “By increasing the number of people who know what to look out for, we can support more people before they are exploited or get involved in crime.”

Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit Director, Steven Hume said: “We are committed to reducing serious violence and vulnerability in our region. In the last three years, we have made significant progress but we know there is always more work to do and challenges to overcome. That is why we are taking such a radical approach to tackling the root causes of violent crime and address the offending behaviour of those causing the most disruption to our communities”.

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The Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit, in partnership with Probation Service, has launched a new intervention aimed at making communities safer by breaking the cycle of offending in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear.

A community alternative to short prison sentences is a new and innovative intervention to divert individuals causing the most disruption in communities by addressing the root cause of their offending behaviour.

Reducing re-offending is a key priority of the Violence Reduction Unit and research has found that short prison sentences of 6 months or less can often lead to higher re-offending rates.

This is due to the disruption from positive factors and influences such as family relationships, housing, employment and access to healthcare and support, meaning individuals return to crime, which has a huge impact on communities.

This exciting project, coordinated by the Violence Reduction and Local Criminal Justice Board, is initially available to Newcastle and South Tyneside Magistrates’ Courts.

Those who are eligible for this intervention will be determined by the local courts in conjunction with the North East Probation Service. Any crimes involving domestic abuse and sex offences will not be considered.

This diversionary route will see probation staff working intensively with individuals to provide practical and mentoring support. They will also ensure engagement with community based services to address issues that trigger their offending.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuinness said: “The North East is a wonderful place and it is imperative that we do everything we can to make sure our communities remain a safe place to live. That’s why, along with the Violence Reduction Unit and Local Criminal Justice Board, we are working with offenders who repeatedly bring disruption to our communities, in order to tackle the underlying causes of their offending. This intervention will bring vital benefits to our communities by understanding and changing those individuals offending behaviour to prevent crime”.

Bronwen Elphick, Regional Director for Probation Services in the North East said: “I am really excited to be supporting such an initiative in our region. A Community Alternative to Short Prison Sentences gives us and our key partners, a real opportunity to try and intensively address re-offending outside of the prison walls, and ensure a level of continuity for individuals in an attempt to enable them to change their behaviour”.

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Young people will again have an exciting opportunity to bid for projects and activities as Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness launches the second round of the Violence Reduction Unit’s Local Youth Fund.

Earlier this year, young people submitted their proposals during the first round of the Local Youth Fund and the Violence Reduction Unit was able to fund 15 successful applications for young people to make a difference in their area.

Now, with £10,000 available and up to £500 per project, young people, with the support of a registered youth or community organisation, can bid for what matters to them in their local area, when the fund opens on Wednesday 5th January 2022.

The Violence Reduction Unit are working with North East Youth Alliance, to ensure young people across Northumberland, Tyne and Wear are aware of this fantastic opportunity.

Providing young people with the opportunity to develop their own project has fantastic benefits in building confidence, experience and skills for use in daily life.

This fund continues to be shaped by young people with the support of a youth panel who will review applications and provide their recommendations for funding.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuinness said: “I asked young people to tell me what matters to them in their local communities and through my Violence Reduction Unit, we’ve funded 15 projects across Northumberland, Tyne & Wear to do just that. And now, I want to hear from young people again – what projects, activities, support do you want to see? There is up to £500 available per project, and I want young people to tell me how best we spend this. So, if you, or someone you know has a great idea, then please do apply”.

She added: “It is vitally important that we engage our regions young people now to ensure they have the right support and opportunities to make positive decisions for the future.”

On behalf of the North East Youth Alliance, NE Youth Chief Executive Jon Niblo said: “The North East Youth Alliance are proud to be a partner within the Local Youth Fund which in round one supported some really positive community projects with young people. Young people also played a key role in the decision-making process gaining new skills and confidence. Good luck to all groups in round two.”

The application form will be available to complete via the Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioners website when the fund opens on Wednesday 5^th January 2022.

For more information on the Local Youth Fund, please contact the Violence Reduction Unit by email VRU@northumbria-pcc.gov.uk.

POLICE Commissioner Kim McGuinness has welcomed new figures that show violent crime is down and more young people are being steered away from violence and criminality.

The latest figures show a 17% reduction in knife enabled serious violence, lower than levels witnessed before Covid in 2019.

The Violence Reduction Unit has set out its third year action plan that sees it continue to take a radical new approach to tackling the root causes of violent crime – a “public health” response in which violent lifestyles are treated like a disease, finding people who are at risk of learning violent behaviour and steering them away from exposure.

The PCC chaired the Violence Reduction Unit’s quarterly strategic board meeting last month and the figures show that since its inception there has been a reduction in serious and violent crime.

With hospital admissions caused by the use of sharp objects almost halved over the last two years and levels of violent crime reduced by up to 17% in areas such as Gateshead, the region’s most vulnerable young people and those on the cusp of crime are seeing their lives turned around through the Violence Reduction Unit’s preventative interventions.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness said, “Our region has come a long way in such a short time, but we know there is still so much more to be done to improve lives and prevent crime in our communities and through the Violence Reduction Unit, I am committed to doing exactly that. This last year has been difficult for so many of us and we have had to be creative in adapting our approach.”

She added: “We cannot just arrest our way out the problem – instead we must continue to educate young people, prevent individuals from re-offending and rebuild our neighbourhood services that were lost to austerity.”

The impact of the Violence Reduction Unit is evident in the number of people engaging in its funded interventions over the last 12 months. Some of the fantastic results include 79 young people whose risk of committing serious and violent crime was reduced, 83 young people with no further police intelligence, 51 young people with improved school attendance and 21 families with increased resilience after accessing dedicated support.

Further community based interventions look to work with individuals to understand their offending behaviour, the impact this behaviour has on victims and to find solutions to identified issues.

The Violence Reduction Unit has also engaged almost 14,000 young people in 645 educational sessions as well as delivering knife crime awareness training to almost 800 frontline workers.

Ipsos MORI found that for every £1 invested in Violence Reduction Units, £3 is saved to the public purse. The most recent local evaluation conducted on year 2 activities found that a combination of the Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit and Police Surge activity, showed savings of £7.5 million per year.

For more information please contact the Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit by email.

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The Government must learn the lessons of Gateshead and “level up” neighbourhood services if it wants to end anti-social behaviour, Police Commissioner McGuinness has said.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness has applauded community-led organisation Edberts House on their work helping families and fighting poverty.

Staff at Edberts House provide people in Gateshead with support for everything from youth services to housing help and family support.

The results have been dramatic drops in anti-social behaviour. One estate in Gateshead, which had the highest level of anti-social behaviour problems ten years ago, with 14.7 out of 100 tenants, has seen this reduce to 0.7 out of 100, below the Borough average as a direct result of supporting local people.

Kim McGuinness, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Northumbria, said she was happy to back the community group with support from her Violence Reduction Unit, but called on the Government to build up these organisations across the north.

She said: “For me it is clear, if we fight poverty we fight crime and if the government is serious about levelling up the north it needs to look at supporting our hardest hit neighbourhoods.

“We have shown that by investing in strong community support centres we can help people take control and turn their neighbourhood around. But there is only so much we can do locally. It is time the Government got serious about levelling all parts of the North, not just business parks and train stations.”

With the launch of three community hubs in the last 10 years, the Edberts House organisation has helped 6000 individuals in a range of activities for families and children, supported by volunteers and local apprentices, who following training, have successfully moved into employment.

The team of experienced community development workers, along with groups of people from the local community, have provided social activities including children and young people’s groups, family learning, arts activities and theatrical productions.

Ms McGuinness added: “I’m incredibly proud that organisations like Edberts House exist in our communities and the impact of the work they do to support those in most need is truly inspiring. Along with my Violence Reduction Unit, they recognise how important it is to give people opportunities to improve lives and ultimately prevent crime in our region.

Sarah Gorman, CEO of Edberts House, says “Violence is always a serious matter, but it is a symptom: a symptom of trauma, a symptom of poverty, a symptom of unemployment, hopelessness, lack of belonging…the list goes on.  By working collaboratively with other organisations, and embedding long term support in our communities, we can address the root causes, and really make a difference.”

For more information please contact the Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit by email vru@northumbria-pcc.gov.uk

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Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness has backed a new scheme to prevent crime which will see dedicated employment support handed to those trying to turn their back on criminality.

The Commissioner’s flagship preventing crime project will see newly released prisoners supported back into full time employment to reduce reoffending across Northumbria.

Employment upon an individual’s release is one of the biggest contributors in reducing re-offending as it provides them with much needed stability and keeps them from returning to familiar paths of criminality.

The scheme was set up as Government data shows nearly half of prison leavers re-offend. Newcastle based The Recruitment Junction, will work alongside the PCC’s Violence Reduction Unit, with an aim to provide support for up to 150 individuals in the first year with the expectation that 50% will secure employment in that period.

Securing employment upon release is not only crucial to reducing reoffending, but also to reducing the £15 billion cost of reoffending that falls to taxpayers.

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuiness said: “I made a commitment to reduce reoffending, and this is exactly what my Violence Reduction Unit and The Recruitment Junction are doing. Providing newly released prisoners with support into full time employment not only benefits the individual but their family, community and the wider public, with the aim of preventing crime in our region.”

The Recruitment Junction work with an individual to support them in anything from writing a CV, to preparing a disclosure note, sourcing clothes for an interview and helping with transport – all of which are vital to the process of securing employment.

The Recruitment Junction have supported over 70 ex-offenders into employment in the past 12 months in industries such as construction, hospitality and administration.

Ms McGuinness added: “This is a local solution to a much bigger problem and the success of The Recruitment Junction’s employment support so far speaks volumes in reducing re-offending. We will continue to work locally to provide support for individuals to enable them to make positive decisions for the future.”

Director of The Recruitment Junction, Beverley Brooks said: “I am excited to have launched the North East’s first recruitment agency for people with convictions – and am thrilled to count 70 men and women moved into paid work since October 2020 – and to see 90% keeping these jobs and thriving.”

She added: “The Recruitment Junction sees people with convictions rediscover a sense of purpose through work and become role models who drive positive generational impact across their families – breaking the cycle of children following parents down the wrong path. We deliver on skills shortages for employers across the North East, we combat persistent regional unemployment and we contribute to a national reduction in re-offending, with fewer victims of crime.”

For more information please contact the Northumbria Violence Reduction Unit by email vru@northumbria-pcc.gov.uk

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