A SCHEME aiming to cut the likelihood of criminals re-offending is to be piloted in Essex.
It will work by trying to give offenders the best chance of getting a job and reduce the risk of them getting into trouble again.
The East of England region is one of just two in the country selected by cross-Government departments and the ministry of justice to pilot re-offending reduction schemes.
The 18-month project will see offender, youth, employment and Government bodies working together to promote best practice in prisons and the community, and consultations with employers.
The scheme, called the Test Bed project, hopes to increase the percentage of Essex offenders in employment, from the 41 per cent recorded for the year 2006 to 2007.
Diana Edwards, Test Bed project manager, said all the indications are that having a job is the single most important element to having a crime-free life.
"We must provide offenders with the skills and the other support they need to find and keep work if we are to have any hope of reducing re-offending rates," she said.
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