COUNCIL officials are asking for the public’s opinion on a draft community justice scheme for Argyll and Bute.
A consultation has been opened seeking opinions on a scheme which aims to assist with the rehabilitation of offenders.
The proposal, developed with a range of partners including Police Scotland’s criminal justice and custody division, and people with lived experience of the justice system, seeks to reduce reoffending and protect the public.
A document published with the survey states: “In the long term, our ambition is to use prison only for those who pose a risk of serious harm.”
The Scottish Government introduced the Community Justice (Scotland) Act 2016, placing a statutory duty on local and national bodies to improve outcomes for those in the justice system.
The report said: “Local community justice partnerships are required to consult, engage and involve a range of communities of interest in local planning and delivery.
“[These include] Third sector, people delivering community-based sentences; people serving community-based sentences; people leaving prison; and wider communities.
“In the development of this plan a wide range of individuals and organisations have participated in discussions focused on what’s working, what’s not and what our collective potential for improvement is.
“This Argyll and Bute community justice plan is accompanied by a delivery action plan 2024-2027, this details the local actions we are pursuing towards creating an enhanced understanding of our capacity to deliver improvements and implement what can be achieved within current resources.
“We are creating a community justice webpage where our annual reports, submitted to Community Justice Scotland, will be published by the end of October each year, providing details of the progress we’ve made, and any challenges encountered. Annual reports covering 2022-2024 will also be published.”
The consultation is available at argyll-bute.gov.uk and is open until 5pm on Friday, March 13.
