Victory for Rochdale residents in community fightback

Date published: 17 November 2009

Residents on a Rochdale housing estate have been praised by prosecutors for ‘standing up for their community’ in a move that has resulted in a 13-year-old youth being convicted of a number of offences and placed under strict supervision.

Families on the Green Meadow estate worked closely with Community Prosecutors from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), GMP officers and Rochdale Council to bring the teenager’s campaign of bullying and anti-social behaviour to an end.

Over a period of several months, the youth – who cannot be named for legal reasons – brought misery to residents on the estate by carrying out criminal damage, burglary, handling stolen goods, witness intimidation and an assault. On 4 November, he received a 12-month referral order and was ordered to pay his victims a total of £500 in compensation.

Anita Green, CPS Divisional Crown Prosecutor for Rochdale, welcomed the result: “Following a CPS and police joint meeting with some of the residents on the Green Meadow estate some time ago, it was agreed that we needed to target key offenders in order to improve the quality of life for many people on the estate.

“Using the new Community Prosecutor approach – which aims to find new ways of giving people more say in how justice is delivered in their neighbourhoods – we consulted with some of those on the estate and explained to them what evidence we needed to bring this offender to justice.

“We listened carefully to their concerns and received valuable information from the police and other partner agencies. This was fed back to CPS lawyers. And, when enough evidence was gathered and it came to considering a charging decision, the impact this individual’s behaviour was having on the whole community was duly taken into account by Senior Crown Prosecutor, Yvonne Tunnicliffe.

“It became patently clear that it was in this community’s interest to ensure this youth was charged and we were successful in obtaining a conviction.”

Mrs Green added: “I have nothing but admiration for the residents on Green Meadow estate who had the bravery to speak up and stand up for their community.”

Superintendent Martin Greenhalgh, from GMP, said: “This result can be attributed to excellent partnership working across the board. The Local Authority, housing association and quality neighbourhood policing have all played a significant role in curtailing this offender’s activities. The Community Prosecutor initiative is an important new device in our toolkit to combat crime and protect communities.”

The Community Prosecutor scheme is part of a Government Green Paper on community justice in England and Wales.

As part of the initiative, senior prosecuting lawyers will work with police and communities to prioritise offences and provide a more locally-responsive service which works closely with all agencies.

Prosecutors will also utilise community impact statements, which will give communities the chance to feed in their views on crimes in their area and the impact the crimes have had on local people.