Police give cash to keep kids from crime

SUSSEX Police Authority has donated £3,240 to help set up a new service to divert young people away from crime and anti-social behaviour in Bexhill.

The grant from the Joint Initiative Fund will help fund work with local youngsters who are on Anti-Social Behaviour Orders - or heading for them.

The multi-agency initiative involves Sussex Police's Rother District, the East Sussex Youth Offending Team (YOT) and Sidley Community Association.

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It will complement the enforcement role of Rother District's Anti-Social Behaviour Co-ordinator, Bob Perry.

Police say the scheme will provide a weekly session at the community centre, using staff from the Youth Offenders Team together with those of the Young People's Centre, to address offending behaviour, with the aim of developing more constructive lifestyles for the young people concerned.

The police cheque was presented to Sidley Community Centre chief executive Margaret Lea and youth worker Julie Wilcox by Rother police commander Chief Inspector Rob Carden and Inspector Fran Mitchell of the Youth Offenders Team for East Sussex at Sidley Community Centre last Friday morning.

Julie plans regular Thursday sessions at Sidley Young People's Centre for youngsters who are the subject of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders or contracts.

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She said: "The sessions will include life-skills and trying to work around why they are offending and what their problems are."

Chief Inspector Carden said: "The important thing is for us to complement the work done by the Rother ASBO officer, Bob Perry, which is about the balanced implementation of preventative measures and showing people that they do have a choice and supporting the work of this community centre in providing that opportunity."