Crime Concern
Central to our aim to promote the prevention of crime and anti social behaviour and their effects on communities we are partnering Crime Concern in a social enterprise awareness programme with a range of schools and other agencies providing support for vulnerable young people.
The Manchester Arndale 4 Youth project involving some 60 students from Harrop Fold School, Salford enabled the participants to form ‘company style’ groups to put forward novel ideas to address the causes and effects of anti social behaviour in their own community, a local shopping centre and the Manchester Arndale. Five ideas were considered by the judges to merit awards and are in the course of being implemented.
One such idea came from five Year 11 students who called their group T.I.P.S.Y - Teaching Independent Personal Skills to Young people, and involved the making of a film entitled ‘Consequences’ which focuses on underage and excessive alcohol consumption. “Consequences” will be shown in schools across Salford to get young people to discuss and understand the issues surrounding alcohol and the consequences of drinking irresponsibly, from putting themselves in danger to behave in an anti social way. The film’s central objective is that by involving teenagers talking to other teenagers in a language that they understand, using a medium that they are familiar with, will have the maximum impact in getting the message across.
Continuing the theme and building on the success of the Harrop Fold project it was agreed to extend the programme to Nottingham where we are working with a selected group of young people from Bulwell Youth Inclusion Project, a specialist agency supporting children deemed at risk from truancy, offending etc. The Victoria Centre, Nottingham is acting as the sponsor with Nottingham Crime & Drugs Partnership.
Some 40 young people took part in the social enterprise project which was spread over twelve weeks. Nottingham County Cricket Club kindly provided facilities at Trent Bridge cricket ground for the launch and finals nights. The participants came up with a number of imaginative ideas for addressing anti-social behaviour in the Nottingham City centre which included secure bicycle stores and a poster campaign to highlight the problems of unsociable behaviour.
The most promising young people have been offered short term ‘apprenticeships’ with local businesses enabling them to gain first hand experience of business life, which should serve as a motivational factor in them gaining full time employment in their chosen field.
We are now discussing with our key partners expanding the programme to involve other young people across the City of Nottingham.
