Press release

Press Notice - North Liverpool residents support new Community Justice initiative

25 November 2004

Local residents are voicing their support for North Liverpool Community Justice Centre, a radical new initiative designed to improve quality of life in the area by reducing criminal activity and the fear of crime at the same time, while providing advice and support to the community.

The centre, which will open fully in 2005, but with many services available from next month, will be the first of its kind in England and Wales. It is designed to work in partnership with local people to provide help with a wide range of problems and deal with offences committed against the community that affect quality of life, for example vandalism, fly tipping and graffiti. The centre will also provide access to support, social and education services for both offenders and local residents. It will contain a courtroom, run by a single judge, who will work closely with the community, to provide consistency for offenders and check that they carry out the sentences they have been given.

So far, over two hundred North Liverpool residents including parents, teenagers, senior citizens, the long-term unemployed and local business people have joined with probation officers and ex-offenders to help develop plans for the Community Justice Centre and discuss how a more holistic approach to low level offending can have a positive impact on their local neighbourhoods.

Findings from independent research1 among a large number of residents, which covered the wards of Anfield, Everton, Kirkdale and Walton within the Atlantic Partnership2 area, give a clear indication of how the Community Justice Centre can provide a new approach to dealing with criminals damaging the quality of life for residents. A programme of public meetings3 is now underway in the run up to Christmas, to allow views from the whole North Liverpool community to be considered.

Research shows that the overall perception is that crime in the area is a problem, with major areas of concern being drugs and youth gangs. Against this background, over three quarters of those participating believe that the Community Justice Centre is, or could be, a good idea.

Nearly three quarters of the residents interviewed are concerned that offenders should be sent to court, be sentenced and rehabilitated quickly, and believe that sentences should be set that involve completing work to benefit the local neighbourhood. Over half think that the community should have a say in the type and location of unpaid work done as part of a sentence.

Two thirds of those interviewed support the idea of a single judge who will make sure that offenders carry out their sentences and three quarters think the community should be able to report what is going on in their area, safely. There is clear agreement that the centre should place an emphasis on dealing with anti-social behaviour-type offences, like car crime, criminal damage and fly-tipping.

Judge David Fletcher, who will lead the centre, said; “There is a lot of support out there for the idea of community justice. Residents are telling us they want improvements to their quality of life, including the need for people to feel safer, have better support and a better environment to live in. The centre represents the most radical change to occur in the justice system for decades. While focusing on reducing crime through tackling its root causes and offering long-term support to the community, we can help all law-abiding citizens to be heard, without fear of reprisal or intimidation.”

Merseyside Police, the Crown Prosecution Service, probation and youth offending teams will all have offices on-site to provide a joined-up, problem-solving approach to offending. The centre also aims to bring a number of other community advice and support services under one roof. This approach is supported by research findings, which show that there is an overall desire for improved services with local accessibility.

Constitutional Affairs Secretary Lord Falconer said:
“Involving the community in deciding the priorities of the centre will mean that local people will see their main concerns being tackled with real and visible payback for the crimes that affect their way of life in their neighbourhood.

“David Fletcher is listening to the concerns of the community, working with local people to find solutions, but will make decisions in the round. He is meeting and learning from local people in a way that has never been done before. I hope that his will enable the people of north Liverpool to know that the centre is there to serve them and help them to make the changes they want.”

Criminal Justice Minister Baroness Scotland said:
“Over the last three years the numbers of offenders being brought to justice in Merseyside has increased by 12%, largely through closer working between the criminal justice agencies. But we must not be complacent. The Community Justice Centre gives us a unique opportunity to forge even stronger links between the agencies and the people they are here to assist, namely the victims who are affected by the type of crimes the centre will deal with.

“By creating a swift and visible means for the public to see justice being done, I am confident that we will continue to increase confidence in the Criminal Justice System and repay the residents, who have given their support to the CJC, by making North Liverpool a safer place to live. “

The Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith QC, said:
“Anti-social behaviour offences may be at the low end of the criminal calendar, but the effect they have on the lives of law-abiding citizens can be devastating. The CPS prosecutors share my conviction that engaging with the community, so that the Criminal Justice Centre's work reflects the concerns and needs of the local people, is essential for the success of the initiative. Having seen for myself what a community justice centre in operation can achieve, this type of partnership is crucial in building public confidence.”

Judge Fletcher is calling on residents to find out more about the Community Justice Centre and have their say in its development by attending a community meeting or contacting his team. They can write to North Liverpool Community Justice Centre, Freepost 22064, Liverpool L2 2QY, telephone 0151 515 3086 or email.

Editor's Notes:

1. Research was carried out by an independent research company, Define Solutions, during August and September 2004. Its researchers spoke personally and in-depth to over 200 people across the North Liverpool neighbourhoods of Anfield, Breckfield, Everton, Kirkdale, Vauxhall Walton and the Eldonian Village. Initial detailed research included 31 in-depth group discussions, interviews with 40 teenagers and feedback from 210 questionnaires. This was supported by feedback from leaflets delivered to 31,000 households across North Liverpool, and interviews with community leaders.

2. The Liverpool Atlantic Partnership is one of the Objective One Programme's designated cluster partnerships with responsibility to build prosperity in the area.

The creation of North Liverpool Community Justice Centre was announced by the Home Secretary, David Blunkett, in September 2003. It is the result of co-operation between the Home Office, the Department for Constitutional Affairs, the Office of the Attorney General, the Crown Prosecution Service and local agencies, and will be run by a single local team. It draws on a concept developed by Red Hook Community Justice Center in New York.
Judge David Fletcher was named last month as the man to lead the North Liverpool Community Justice Centre. He was officially sworn in as a circuit judge on 4 November. He graduated from Liverpool University in 1978 and has held numerous positions in the judicial system, most recently as a district judge in Sheffield.
The preferred location for North Liverpool Community Justice Centre is that of a former school in Boundary Street, Vauxhall.

Crimes dealt with by the centre will not include serious sexual crimes or violent offences, which will still be dealt with by other courts.