You can make a difference!

Meg Ware - Youth Offender Panel Volunteer

That's how Meg Ware from Low Fell feels about her role as a volunteer working with young offenders and their victims on one of Gateshead's Youth Offender Panels.

Meg has been a panel member for several years and says it's one of the best things she's ever done. "It's always easier to sit back and do nothing," she said. "But I wanted to make Gateshead a better place to live and this is my way of doing that.

"I have been a victim of crime myself and doing this has been one of the most rewarding and satisfying things I've done. I've seen at first hand the positive effects the work of the panel has had on the young person and their victim so I know that these panels can make a real difference."  

What are Youth Offender Panels

Youth offender panels have been running in Gateshead since April 2002.  First time offenders - some as young as ten - meet their victims face to face giving them the opportunity to ask why they did it, and to look at ways of making good the damage they have done.

This is important for young people as it:

• helps them to take responsibility for their actions and try to put right the harm they have done.
• gives them the chance to look at why they have behaved in this way and opens the door to a range of support and help to prevent them from offending again.

Young offenders can find themselves doing work in the community tidying up recreation areas, Church grounds or school gardens or decorating community centres and other local facilities.

And people representing businesses that have been damaged or vandalised (rather than a crime against an individual), can also attend a giving their views and asking the young offender to make good the harm that they have done.