Merseyside Community Rehabilitation Company needs to do more to protect public safety

MERSEYSIDE Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) needs to do more to keep people safe, according to an independent report. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation inspects probation and youth offending services across England and Wales. Inspectors found Merseyside CRC; which supervises more than 6,500 low and medium risk offenders; needs to improve its work on public protection.

Inspectors found domestic abuse and safeguarding checks were often seen as administrative tasks, rather than crucial work to keep people safe. Opportunities to identify and assess risks were sometimes missed, for example when people on probation started new relationships or moved in with partners who have children.

When probation staff did identify potential risks, they did not routinely conduct home visits. These can help officials to understand whether other people living at the property; including children; are in danger.

Merseyside CRC is performing well in some areas. Staff were found to be hard working and committed to delivering the best possible service, despite a lack of resources. The inspection also found services for women under probation supervision were "impressive."

HM Inspectorate of Probation has given Merseyside CRC a 'requires improvement' rating.

Chief Inspector of Probation Dame Glenys Stacey said:- "Merseyside CRC needs to give priority to public safety. We recommend they look again at how they manage risk, and equip staff with the skills and knowledge to keep actual and potential victims safe."

Some of the report's findings present a mixed picture. In nearly ½ of the inspected cases, people on probation were not playing an active part in their own supervision. Typically, people under supervision are asked to consider why they committed a crime and what would prevent further offending. This questioning was not happening routinely, which is disappointing.

Conversely, inspectors also found many examples of probation staff going the extra mile to meet the needs of the people they supervised. Individuals were supported to complete their sentences, vulnerable people were seen several times a week and medical conditions were given due consideration.

Dame Glenys said:- "It is vital that probation staff build strong, challenging and trusting relationships with the people they supervise. Staff need to work together with individuals to create plans that address why they offended and put steps in place to prevent further offending."

Inspectors were encouraged to find the leadership team had already started to address some critical issues, such as redeploying staff to cover absences.

Merseyside CRC was also found to deliver some good services to help people under supervision to find work, training, education and accommodation. Support for people leaving prison and resettling in the community; known as Through the Gate; showed promise.

It's official; Liverpool is crowned the comedy capital of the UK

FAMED for its cheeky sense of humour, Liverpool has been crowned the comedy capital of UK, chosen by 23% of the nation as the place which contains the funniest people in Britain.  Newcastle and London follow in 2nd and 3rd spots, with Manchester and then Glasgow making up the top 5 funniest cities in the UK.

'A Nation of Laughs' is the new study commissioned by Comedy Central Live, a 3 day comedy festival taking place in Southampton in October, to delve into the comedy habits of the nation. The festival features an unbeatable line-up of comedians from all over the country, North and South, including from each of the top 10 funniest Cities in the UK.

The top 10 funniest Cities revealed:-

►  Liverpool, 23%.

►  Newcastle, 14%.

►  London, 12%.

►  Manchester, 10%.

►  Glasgow, 10%.

►  Edinburgh, 4%.

►  Bristol, 3%.

►  Birmingham, 3%.

►  Belfast, 3%.

►  Brighton, 2%.

The study, has reignited the age old:- 'North versus South' debate and turned up a new trump card for Northerners; they are officially funnier than their Southern counterparts. A massive 74% of the nation believe that Northerners are naturally hilarious and even 61% of people who live down South admit their Northern brethren are more comedic than them.

Penny Brough, VP Marketing, Creative and Communications, Comedy Central Live says:- "Northerners may have come out top in the comedy stakes, but we know Southerners are just as funny and for 1 weekend, 5 October to 7 October, we'll be making Southampton the funniest place in Britain. We have an unbeatable and diverse line up of comedians from across the whole country, cracking all types of jokes that will suit all comedy tastes."

The study also sheds light on the type of humour most beloved by the people of Liverpool, resulting in nearly a third opting for sarcasm and ranking it top of the list of what they find funny. One-liners also float their boats, with 14% of the votes.

On average Liverpudlians laugh out loud 9 times a day, slightly less than the national average of 11 times a day. However, Londoners laugh more than anyone else; cracking up on average 15 times a day. If you favour off colour gags, Glasgow came top of the list for dirty humour, winning with 12.3% of votes, just squeaking in ahead of Newcastle (12.1%) and Liverpool following in third (11.7%). Norwich picked up the title for heckling capital of Britain, with a massive 40% of residents claiming to have interrupted a comedian's performance with a joke of their own, whereas in Liverpool only 18% will heckle.

When asked how funny they think they are, 71% of Liverpudlians rate themselves highly, proclaiming themselves as either:- 'funny' or 'very funny.' 96% Liverpudlians believe "laughter is the best medicine" saying they feel better after a good laugh.

Tickets for Comedy Central Liveare on sale NOW! For more information and to buy tickets, go to:- ComedyCentral.Co.UK/CCLive.

Society in Southport launches Socktober appeal to support the homeless

YORKSHIRE Building Society colleagues in Southport are asking the community to donate new pairs of socks and other items to help support homeless people. The Society is relaunching its month long Socktober appeal throughout October, due to the impact of the campaign in 2017. The campaign is part of the Society's charity partnership with End Youth Homelessness (EYH) and to raise awareness of World Homeless Day, on Wednesday, 10 October 2018.

Donations of new pairs of socks, toiletries and interview clothes plus other items such as woolly hats, gloves, scarves, can be made at the Southport branch, on London Road. The branch is also raising money for EYH and is asking the public to support Socktober by making a donation to the campaign and posting a picture of themselves online with their favourite socks on 10 October with the hashtag #socktober.

An estimated 86,000 young people in the UK are homeless and, according to latest figures, 52 young people in Sefton received some homelessness support from their local authority in 2016/17.

Graham Stukley, manager of the Southport branch of Yorkshire Building Society, said:- "This is our 2nd Socktober campaign and we are hoping to make it as sock cessful as in 2017. This year as well as donations of socks, we are also asking for toiletries, interview clothes, woolly hats, gloves and scarves and every single item will go to a homeless person. We're really proud of our partnership with End Youth Homelessness and providing help for young people in need. Thanks to donations from people in Southport and all over the UK we have been able to help 125 young people into their own rented homes. The money that is raised funds a bespoke Rent Deposit Scheme which provides young people access to a deposit guarantee home essentials grants and practical help for living independently. I would like to thank everyone who has supported us so far and would ask people to donate what they can to help us give homeless young people a chance to build a successful future."

Through the course of the Society's 3 year partnership with EYH it aims to raise ₤750,000. EYH is a UK wide movement, bringing together local charities to tackle youth homelessness on a national scale.

Charlotte Milner, Senior Corporate Partnerships Officer for End Youth Homelessness, said:- "Every year 86,000 young people are homeless in the UK. Through our partnership with Yorkshire Building Society we are not only supporting homeless young people into their own rented homes, we are also aiming to break down the barriers that homeless young people face. Donations can be made at JustGiving.Com."