The Revolving Doors Agency describes the work undertaken by a number of PCCs to cut crime and reduce re-offending among young adults (18-24) as ‘ground-breaking’.

Among those highlighted is Gloucestershire’s PCC Martin Surl who, according to the report, “… has contributed to a range of community schemes for vulnerable ‘young people becoming adults’ – including offenders and those at risk of getting involved in offending – through the Commissioning Fund”.

The briefing is the first in a series of ‘PCC spotlights’ by Revolving Doors Agency and the Transition to Adulthood Alliance (T2A), designed to highlight promising practice among PCCs which could be replicated in other areas.

The ‘PCC Spotlight’ briefing argues that PCCs should capitalise on their position to address these issues on a local basis, cutting across the youth and adults systems with their key strategic and commissioning role. It acknowledges that in Gloucestershire PCC Martin Surl has identified “young people becoming adults” as a key priority, and is supporting a number of services covering the transition from youth to young adulthood through his commissioning fund. This includes:

•  Outreach support for young women: The PCC’s strategy places particular emphasis on improving responses for young women. This includes working with the Isis women’s centre in Gloucester, which provides holistic support to vulnerable women who face complex needs, including those at risk of offending or reoffending. Through the commissioning fund, the PCC is funding a dedicated female outreach worker to work with girls and young women aged 16 to 24 in rural areas of Gloucestershire who are involved in offending, anti-social behaviour (ASB) and substance misuse, or are at risk of such involvement.
• Community services for young people and young adults, including funding extra capacity at services such as the Door Project, which works with disadvantaged young people and young adults up to the age of 24 and provides diversionary activity for those at risk of offending.
• Policing the night time economy: The PCC has also placed a focus on the night time economy, which raises particular challenges in the policing of young adults. A partnership with the University of Gloucestershire will contribute towards funding research in this area.

The briefing highlights promising practice which other areas might want to consider in developing more effective approaches to young adult crime, including bringing a range of partners together to tackle this issue.

It concludes that whether or not the PCC model survives the next election, there is much to learn from how different areas have sought to improve responses for young adults.

To read the full report http://www.revolving-doors.org.uk/documents/pcc-spotlight-young-adults/.