COMMUNITY service in West Hertfordshire has been taken one step further with a scheme which will enable offenders to develop skills while undertaking compulsory unpaid work.

The Enhanced Community Punishment (ECP) initiative has been adopted by Hertfordshire Probation in an attempt to address high reoffending rates.

Between April and September 2003, offenders in West Hertfordshire completed 11,250 hours of unpaid work for the community.

Projects currently being completed by community punishment programs in the Watford area include conservation work, painting and decoration of a community and youth centre and refurbishment of a day centre for people with learning difficulties.

Offenders also often work with charities and are closely supervised.

Hertfordshire Probation senior manager Carole McDougall explained: "There will be a greater focus on rehabilitating offenders so that they do not commit further crime."

ECP will address anti social attitudes, poor thinking skills and poor employment skills by giving offenders high levels of contact time with staff, practical examples of how to approach problems and useful experience in the workplace to teach relevant work skills.

Ms McDougall said: "Research has shown that all these factors are important in getting offenders to quit crime. And it has been proved that the single most important factor is being able to get secure employment."

Offenders will be warned at the start that if they fail to turn up they will sent back to court for re-sentence.

Ms McDougall added: "Community punishment is a tough option where offenders work unpaid for up to 240 hours on local projects."

The new scheme was launched at the end of October.