Community Remedy was introduced in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
It is a tool to give victims a say in the out of court punishment of perpetrators for low level crime and anti-social behaviour.
Following a consultation by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner in March 2014, a list of options were identified and agreed.
This was in order for victims to indicate their preference at to how the offender should be dealt with. One of the options on the list was reparation.
Reparation allows the victim or Police Officer to seek appropriate community work to repair the harm caused if/when possible.
Examples include: fixing a damaged fence or clearing litter from the victim’s garden. If there is no appropriate reparation then the offender can be referred to an appropriate reparation scheme. For adults this will be facilitated by ARCC (Community Rehabilitation Company).
When referred to ARCC, the offender will be interviewed and assessed on their suitability for the type of work to be completed. The victim will be consulted with regards to this.
The individual will then be allocated a work placement. Information on the offender’s appointments and attendance will be shared with the Restorative Justice co-ordinator for monitoring and recording.
Community Payback has wide reaching benefits. it is intended as a punishment and also as a means by which offenders can make amends to the individual/community for the harm they have caused.
This in turn allows the offender to understand the consequences of their actions and also gives the victim the satisfaction that the offender has been dealt with appropriately and fairly.
Where practicable, supervised group sessions will be used to achieve value for money. However dependent upon referrals, individual placements may need to be commissioned.
Decision 87 – 2015. introduction of Community Payback (application, 214kB)