Planning for a better future
Plans to make life better for people across South Lanarkshire in the future have been laid out by professionals.
That was as part of a conference on ‘community justice’work and trying to make it as effective and appropriate as possible.
Professionals and those benefiting from community justice programmes joined in agreeing the priorities for South Lanarkshire Community Justice Partnership for the upcoming financial year.
At the annual conference, delegates heard from speakers about the wide-range of activities, groups and organisations working to help people in the justice system and those trying to avoid falling foul of the law.
Liam Purdie, head of children and justice services at South Lanarkshire Council, chaired the conference.
He said:“The conference was a great combination of knowledge imparted and information passed to us.
“When providing services, young people, women and people returning from prison will also remain as our target groups.
“Community justice is not about theories, it is about people and their lives, and so it is fitting when we are determining our work that we listen to the people who have experienced, or who are experiencing, difficulties as well as to those who are at the front line of dealing with them.”
Professionals speaking at the conference included Suzanne Fitzpatrick from Heriot-Watt University, Rebecca Worrell and Keith Gardner from Community Justice Scotland, Margaret Halbert of Liber8, Tracey Burns of Families Outside, Claire Borden from the council, and members of East Kilbride Women’s Hub.