On Tuesday, the powerful House of Commons Home Affairs Committee took evidence from Pauline Bryant and Clive Barber in their roles as Governor and Deputy Governor of Reading Young Offenders’ Institution. The Select Committee is conducting an inquiry into “The Government’s Approach to Crime Prevention” with a particular focus on strategies to cut re-offending rates.

The Committee heard how the National Grid Young Offender Programme began life in Reading YOI with a training and recruitment programme which gave young offenders an opportunity to learn a trade and be gainfully employed on their release from prison. Pauline Bryant and Clive Barber were invited to give evidence to the Committee by Reading West MP Martin Salter who is a keen supporter of the Young Offender Programme.

Mr Salter said:-

“I’m proud that Reading was the location for the groundbreaking National Grid Young Offender Programme which has seen the national youth re-offending rate for people leaving first time custodial sentences cut from a disgraceful 70 percent to an inspirational 7 percent. Quite clearly training and pathways into work are the key to ensuring that young people do not return to a life of crime.”

Mr Salter added:-

“The Committee was particularly shocked to hear that only 20 percent of prisoners have the writing skills as least as good as an 11 year old child and that over 60 percent were using drugs or abusing alcohol before imprisonment. There was broad agreement with the views of both Pauline Bryant and Clive Barber that it is pointless handing out short sentences to young criminals with these sorts of serious problems. It is simply not possible to deliver effective literacy, numeracy, or drug rehabilitation programmes in anything under six months. I would be surprised if the Committee’s final report on this subject does not recommend an end to short first time sentences in order to give the prisons a real opportunity to try and effectively address some of the causes of persistent re-offending.”