Young offenders do positive work with food banks

Monday 24 April 2023

Young offenders are "giving back" in their voluntary work with local food banks – at a time when the Probation Service says it is referring more clients than ever to these organisations amid the cost of living crisis.

In 2022, 22 children and young people attended over 90 sessions as part of the Positive Steps scheme, from boxing classes to sessions with Mind, Thrive Jersey, and the Fire and Ambulance Services.

These sessions are carried out alongside core probation work and give offenders the chance to make reparation to the community, increase their awareness about responsible citizenship and learn new skills.

As part of this scheme, the Service has recently partnered with the St. Vincent de Paul food bank at St. Thomas's Church. Behind the scenes, and before the queues form outside, the young offenders stock shelves, prepare and stack supplies – and these queues have been getting longer and longer.

In February, Salvation Army officer Richard Nunn said that the organisation had seen a 41% rise in the number of households using its Minden Street food bank in January, compared to the same month last year.

Pictured: Richard Nunn, a Salvation Army officer, said there had been a rise in the number of islanders using their food banks.

Mike Cutland, the Chief Probation Officer, said that up to 20 of the service's 120 to 130 clients currently on probation had been referred to food banks, a figure which he described as a significant increase from previously.

Chantelle Rose, the Restorative Justice Officer who heads the Positive Steps scheme, said: "Some of the offenders are very lucky and they have a lot of material things, and working with food banks opens their eyes to what's going on in the Island, to see that there are going to be people queuing up there in the few hours."

She added: "With the cost-of-living crisis, there are a lot of people in need in our Island. It's rewarding and it's powerful for them to know they are giving back."

Pictured: Peter, one of the organisers of the St. Vincent de Paul food bank.

The Positive Steps scheme, Ms Rose said, "is a partnership approach between the Service and key agencies to provide a rehabilitative programme. We give them activities and opportunities to help them try and stay out of trouble, to give them experiences they find relevant, interesting, and inspiring."

There are three aims: that the work is educational, that their reparational voluntary work is for the benefit of the community, and that it is for their wellbeing and mental health.

"Our hope is that by working with all the different agencies, we can provide a positive impact in children's lives that can be sustained and lead to happier and healthier and safer futures where offending doesn't feature."

She added: "The volunteers have been amazing and treated our young people as one of the team. It has been really positive just seeing the development of the young people that work there, working with confidence and interacting with new people that they wouldn't normally mix with."

Pictured: The 'Grow' project, set up in partnership with Thrive Jersey, aims to tackle food poverty by growing fruit and vegetables whist promoting sustainability and environmental awareness, plus mental wellbeing, among offenders.

Express spoke to one of the offenders who volunteered at the food bank on the Positive Steps scheme – and has continued to do so, even now his order has been completed.

He said: "It taught me a lot more about the situations of other people in the island and what they're going through."

"I'm just sorting out the shelves, but there are a lot of people that come out and start queuing hours before it opens, which shows that the Island is in a bit of a state right now. There's so many – too many people to be able to help them all at once."

He added: "It's pretty rewarding. Even if you're only doing a little part, you're still helping someone in some way. I have continued with it, because it's just a nice thing to do, and it doesn't bother me that much."

The skills he has learned include patience and discipline, as well as adding to his existing skills: "It's definitely taught me how to cope better with things and taught me different ways I can take out my stress and anger.

"We also did the Emotional Coping Course which taught us some skills that help us with stressful situations. I use one or two of them in my day-to-day."

Chantelle said that as part of the scheme, offenders can also take first aid and fire safety courses which give them certificates and qualifications to add to their CV.

Ms Rose said: "A lot of young people over here who are not in education or not working can be a bit lost and mix with the wrong people, but we want them to thrive and be the best versions of themselves."