Bromley: Workshops aimed at young people help reduce crime in the borough

A number of initiatives have been undertaken in order to reduce crime in Bromley, it has been revealed.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson visited the borough earlier last week to analyse the steps taken to reduce crime in the area.

He was welcomed by the Youth Offending Service (YOS), where he spent time finding out how Bromley works with young people in danger of turning to a life of crime.

The team also works with those who have been in trouble, to support them through court procedures and help divert them from accepting a life of crime. 

Councillor Tim Stevens, executive member for Public Protection and Safety, hosted the visit, which saw the mayor attend workshops in which youngsters were participating in projects such as bicycle repair and maintenance and car manufacture.

The workshops have been run in partnership with Bromley Police and the Council’s Road Safety Unit. The project sees unclaimed stolen cycles returned to road worthiness and passed on to victims of bike crime.

The mayor commented: "Bromley is doing some excellent work to make the borough safer and, in particular, to steer young people away from getting involved in crime and teach them valuable new skills. It was great to see first-hand the range of activities, from mentoring to citizenship programmes at schools like Hillside Primary, aimed at teaching youngsters to become responsible adults.” 

Funding for the programme comes from the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC).

The initiative also includes a mentoring scheme where volunteers provide a role model for young people who may not easily find this guidance in their normal day-to-day lives. The Mayor also took the opportunity to talk to a young person involved in the project about the benefits of having a non-judgemental person to talk to.

Councillor Tim Stevens added: "We were delighted that the Mayor was able to spend a morning to see what we are achieving here in Bromley around crime prevention and diversion as well as giving support to those young people who may be in danger of getting into trouble. I am hugely proud of the hard work and dedication that the police, council and our partners put in along with many volunteers who really make a difference to the safety of our communities." 

Published 18th February, 2014

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