Hello

I am excited to have allocated funding to create a Youth Ambassador project in Sussex made up of over 30 children and young people.

Our Youth Ambassador Project will be led by the Breck Foundation - a UK wide charity established in 2014 in response to the tragic death of 14-year-old Breck Bednar, who was groomed and murdered by someone he met online. The Foundation delivers life-saving online harms awareness education to children across the UK.

For this pioneering project, the Breck Foundation will create cohorts of ambassadors aged 13-18 who receive training to deliver high-quality, peer-to-peer educational presentations on the signs of online grooming and exploitation using Breck’s story.

15 schools are taking part in the scheme across Sussex, primarily focusing on years 9 and 10. The project will also see an additional cohort of over-16s at BHASVIC College acting as 'Senior Ambassadors'.

The aim of the project is to engage and empower young people to become confident and inspirational speakers, whilst highlighting the dangers of grooming which has risen by 84% nationally in the last four years.

Breck’s story, sadly, isn’t a standalone tragedy. 70% of grooming happens on social media with 25% of victims being under the age of 12. Peer-to-peer education is a proven route to prevention in the increasingly digital age and I am eager to see our pilot ambassador programme take flight. I am confident that our Youth Ambassadors will soon be helping young people stay safe online and I look forward to meeting the new recruits over the coming months and providing further updates through this newsletter and my website.

Sussex Pathways

Sussex Pathways is a criminal justice charity and a valued partner with my office. They work within prisons and communities in order to reduce offending behaviours and help ex-offenders make positive life choices.

At the meeting it was good to hear updates on the many programmes Sussex Pathways participate in or run, including our very own Restorative Justice Partnership which is funded by my office.

During the meeting, Debbie Knight (Head of Community Integration at Kent, Sussex and Surrey Probation) spoke about the challenges faced by prisons, including capacity issues and demands on the Probation Service.

She gave a detailed talk on how the Probation Service are working with Sussex Pathways to mentor prolific offenders in prison prior to their release. The mentoring and support includes accompanying the offender to important meetings, signposting to professional community agencies and practical support in rehabilitating back into the community. The volunteer mentors can also meet offenders at the prison gate upon their release.

With the proven reoffending rate for adults being approximately 25-55%, depending on the length of custodial sentences, this ‘Through The Gate’ service, is invaluable in helping people make positive life choices after prison.

Debbie described the joint initiative with the charity as "game-changing” and said her team have noticed significant improvements to ex-offender’s behaviour at their probation meetings.

Rehabilitation and support for offenders plays a vital role in helping people to successfully reintegrate back into society and to prevent re-offending. Ultimately, it can help break the cycle of crime and lead to an even safer Sussex for all.

Katy Bourne OBE
Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner