Mid Worcestershire MP Peter Luff has paid a visit to the Transition to Adulthood’s West Mercia pilot project, delivered by youth charity YSS.
 
Peter Luff was hosted by Lorraine Preece Director of Operations and Business Development YSS, alongside Manjinder Purewal, West Mercia Probation Trust Worcestershire Assistant Chief Officer and Phil Kendrick, YOS Performance Quality and Commissioning Manager, West Mercia YOS.
 
David Andrewartha, acting Team Manager YSS, and T2A Keyworker Alison Steedman together with three young service users gave the opportunity for the MP to hear first-hand some of the experiences of the young adults taking part in the programme.
 
They shared their views on a number of issues including employment, the lack of affordable rented accommodation, services for those with mental health issues and the need to provide better education on drugs in schools about the impact drugs.
 
Following his visit, Peter Luff commented: “I saw that it is perfectly possible to turn around young lives and give people who have fallen into bad company or made serious errors of judgement a completely fresh start. The testimony I heard from young offenders about the effectiveness and importance of this scheme was really impressive and I congratulate everyone involved.”
 
At a time when the future of probation is being much debated, it is particularly important for Members of Parliament to learn at first-hand about the results that can be achieved through holistic services, in which the third sector and statutory services work in partnership.