Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s Onside programme will continue to tackle the issue of re-offending in the city by working with 30 more offenders in HMP Leeds and HMP Wealstun over the next 10 weeks
'Onside' which is Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s 10-week programme, combines classroom based work and physical activity sessions aimed at helping the offenders find work upon their release and has worked with 46 offenders since its launch in October 2016.
Following the initial success of the programme delivered at HMP Leeds in Armley, the programme has now also been successfully introduced to HMP Wealstun, where 20 offenders have now also taken part since January 2017.
Members attending 'Onside' are generally young offenders with less than six months to serve on their sentence and who have shown a desire to make changes in their lives and, with new 10-week programmes starting at the prisons this month, the total of offenders using the service will reach over 75.
Although funded directly by HMP Wealstun, the course at HMP Leeds is funded by the Safer Communities Fund, which was launched by Mark Burns-Williamson, Police and Crime Commissioner for West Yorkshire, to help voluntary, community groups, charities and partners make their communities safer and feel safer.
The Safer Communities Fund is financed from monies recovered by West Yorkshire Police under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA). Grants are awarded in line with the priorities set out in the Police and Crime plan.
Project Lead from Leeds Rhinos Foundation, Janet Sylvester said:
“The costs of crime in the UK are estimated at £11 billion annually with costs locally also in the millions and the non-financial impacts on families and communities much greater, so projects like ‘Onside’ are important for redressing this trend.”
“Through our work with offenders so far, we have been able to measure some of the visible growth in engagement and determination to succeed upon release from our participants as well as some measurable data showing a movement away from offending for some of those already released.”
Another success story from the programme has seen previous participants identified as being individuals who had benefited from attending the project to come back and mentor the next groups, something which adds to the delivery according to Sylvester:
“The mentors we have chosen have shown focus and determination throughout and their contributions to the group have been inspirational to the other participants which is of great value to the class.
“We have tasked the mentors with supporting individuals within the group who are lower ability where they have interacted well showing both empathy and understanding to all the other participants, she added.”
For more information on Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s Onside Programme contact Janet.Sylvester@leedsrhinosfoundation.org