Examples of Community Payback
An improved sense of safety for local residents
Residents of a well-known "difficult" estate were pleased when its owners, Estuary Housing, set out to make improvements and upgrade their surroundings. Estuary called in the Probation Service, and a fruitful partnership developed. After a survey of residents, Probation’s Unpaid Workers have painted over the graffiti on stairwells, in large underground car parks, brightening the areas which had become threatening spaces for residents. Bushes which were perceived as potential hiding-places for an attacker were dug up and removed, making residents’ return to their front doors less anxiety-provoking.
"We are delighted with the results of our co-operation with Probation", said the Estate Manager.
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Best Kept Churchyard Calendar
Keith Sutton looks after the churchyard in Panfield, Essex. He’s a real enthusiast. He also voluntarily supervises offenders
sentenced to do unpaid work for the community. "I've done this since about 1997", he says. “The work they’ve done has been excellent - and not just in the churchyard: decorating the new church hall extension from the bare plaster and wood, building racking, shelving and storage, repairing badly cracked ceilings, repairing tables, replacing rotting floor boards, and levelling a large area of ground behind the hall. The total cost of employing similar labour would be an impossible task for a village of less than 1,000 people.”
This year, the churchyard was featured as one of the 12 finalists in the national best-kept churchyard competition, appearing in the resulting calendar. “Thanks to your supervisees”, he says. And our thanks to you, Keith.
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 Special garden for disabled children
Young children with disabilities in Chelmsford are having a very special sensory garden built for them, with the help of offenders doing Unpaid Work. Planned and developed by a professional garden landscaper, the garden in Woodland school grounds allows young children to move easily around the area, enjoying the beauty, fun and variety of a cleverly-designed space.
“I am very impressed with the quality of the work done by these ex-offenders”, says the designer. “We are planning to take some of them on as full-time workers.”
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A renovated community centre in Grays
The only remaining building from the old Ockendon Hospital site, offenders assisted in its renovation, painting outside and inside. They have maintained the grounds and built a disabled ramp. The current project is to build a large raised flower bed, in brick.
Having completed his Unpaid Work hours, one of the offenders is now working in the evenings at the Community Centre.
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Sorting out Amy’s house
Amy finds it difficult to walk far, and has had a lot of problems. She is now settled in a house, though it has needed a lot of attention. Unpaid workers are currently cutting back the chaotic back garden, making a patio for Amy to use, and instead of a briar patch, she will have a lawn.
“These young people are stars”, says Amy. “I don’t know what I’d do without them.”
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Wat Tyler Country Park teaches offenders and receives their help
 Unpaid Work groups have been regulars at Wat Tyler park in Basildon for 19 years. The Countryside Warden says “In the past 19 years both Countryside Service and Probation Service have worked in close partnership with each other to achieve a first class rating in the management of Wat Tyler Country Park. As recently as in the last 12 - 18 months, we have achieved a sensory garden project and created a hibernaculum, the opening of which was broadcast live on BBC Essex as a 5 star hotel for wildlife in and around the ponds at the park.
"A Horticultural Course was run earlier this year with offenders from the Probation Service, in conjunction with Badgehurst Training and our tutor Judith Large, achieving an 80% pass rate (8 awards)."
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Developing school grounds
  An overhanging roof built for a school in Basildon recently saved about £8,000. "If it wasn't for your people, the school would be unable to develop certain areas due to a lack of funding" said the Head teacher.
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Helping a young woman with Motor Neurone Disease
 Completely changing the garden, and creating a large decking area, has meant that a young mother has still been able to move outside the confines of her house. Creating beautifully designed brickwork paving and a decking patio easily reached from the back of the house has not only assisted her, but has given the offenders the opportunity to feel positive about the help they have been able to offer.
“This is a very important project for a lot of us”, said one of them.
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