Crime reporter LAURA SMITH joined offenders on community payback, working to create a wildlife garden, just off the A127, in Westcliff, to see what was involved

COMMUNITY service has long been seen as a soft option as punishment for criminals.

It’s also the last thing you might expect a Tory Justice Secretary to back instead of prison.

But Ken Clarke has said it works better than repeatedly giving short jail terms to persistent offenders.

In Southend, 63 per cent of the people who completed an order with the Probation Service two years ago haven’t been back in trouble.

Every member of the team I accompanied had shown up, rather than risk breaching their court order.

They were slogging it out in sweltering temperatures to clear the land of thicket and weeds.

The idea is to create a sanctuary where Westcliff residents can enjoy and schoolchildren can visit.

They have already found slo worms and a black fox and it is hoped other animals will be encouraged to the area once the work is done. It will even include a wet area for frogs and newts.

Martin, 21, had been given 250 hours community service after stealing a bottle of wine – and was regretting it.

He said: “It’s a lot of hard work for a bottle of wine that’s worth only £5. I’ve got about four months left. It’s reasonable work, but it’s not nice when it’s hot. You’ve just got to get on with it.”

The offenders must all wear a bright orange bib with the words “Community Payback” emblazoned across the back.

The idea is not to embarrass them, but to show the public what work they are benefiting from.

Not all offenders are deemed suitable and are given a rating based on what type of work they can do. For example, there’s no risk of a sex offender working at a school. The work is carefully chosen and must not take jobs away from other people.

Recent projects have included removing graffiti at the Woodgrange Estate, Southend, and creating a wildlife garden at St Luke’s Church, Prittlewell.

General maintenance across the borough also takes place.

If those undertaking community payback breach their order by missing three appointments, they are brought back before the court where they can be given more hours, a curfew, or face prison.

But they also learn a range of skills, which can be the stepping stone into paid employment and away from petty crime.

These can include numeracy and literary skills, which many offenders may have struggled through life without.

Lynne McKay, a spokeswoman for the Probation Service, said: “One of the key things about stopping people committing crime is if they get a regular job. That’s what we are aiming for – making them more jobworthy.”

Last year there was £2million worth of unpaid work, based on the minimum wage, carried out across Essex by 3,000 offenders.

If you spend a day at Southend Magistrates’ Court or in custody at Southend police station, it becomes clear many of the offenders are addicted to drugs or drink.

They commit violent crimes because their addiction makes them lose control, or they rob and steal to pay for it. Go back a month later and you see the same people there committing the same crimes.

Mrs McKay said probation orders can be carried out alongside orders which tackle the root of the problem, such as addictions.

She believes this works better than short-term prison sentences, which can make people more likely to re-offend.

Mrs McKay added: “If you go to prison for a few weeks, it’s long enough to lose your job, your family, and your home, whereas we can keep those things in place.

“Evidence from other countries is if you increase the prison population, you don’t reduce crime. Our alternative to prison is cheap by comparison.

“If you could produce a medication that’s more effective and cheaper, why would you use one less effective and more expensive?”