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Of the masses of data contained in the latest reconviction rates for Scotland, two key figures highlight the need for a change in approach to addressing offending:
73% of offenders receiving a short custodial sentence of three months or less are likely to reoffend within two years. This figure drops significantly to 42% when a community penalty is imposed.
These figures clearly show existing community penalties to be more than twice as effective as short term custody in stopping reoffending. The new Community Payback Order has the potential to improve this rate even further. Aside from unpaid work, the Community Payback Order can include a requirement for the offender to attend treatment for alcohol or drug misuse; often the root cause of offending behaviour. This change of emphasis from a simple punitive measure to a more sophisticated sanction which pays back to the community, challenges the root causes and addresses reoffending is a massively positive step. This is a challenging option. Making offenders pay back for their crimes and actively tackle their underlying issues and behaviour is infinitely more difficult for them than another short stint in prison.
Jailing offenders for a short time does nothing to rehabilitate them, nothing to challenge their behaviour and nothing to pay back to victims for the harm or damage they have caused. It exposes them to negative and damaging influences and overstretches prison resources at the expense of rehabilitation work with long term prisoners.
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