PEOPLE in Preston and Leyland can look forward to a safer community after Lancashire Probation Service announced its plan for cutting crime in the area.

In their annual report published this week, probation chiefs have outlined details of how they intend to contribute to the government's efforts to tackling offenders.

It follows a government consultation document published in June 1998, 'Joining Forces to Protect the Public', which signalled a long overdue, better working relationship between the Prison and Probation Service.

Now the published 17-page red and white glossary details how Lancashire Probation Service will contribute to the effort.

Chief Probation Officer of Lancashire Probation Service, John Crawforth said: "Reducing crime and the blight it creates within communities is fundamental to raising the quality of life for the people of Lancashire.

"It can only be done through sustained and focused effort. Crucially, it will depend on us working to a common agenda."

The report details the probation service as labelling public and community safety and the reducing of criminal offending as its main priorities, stressing the importance of enforcement along the way. And working with a budget of £12,378,800 which is 80 per cent funded by the Home Office, the report showed that the service planned on:

Supervising offenders in line with the best evidence available on 'what works' in reducing offending.

Enforcing orders and licences rigorously to National Standards 2000 requirements.

Achieving real measurable improvement in the quality of their reports to the courts.

Mr Crawforth also said that it would be of special importance that their work builds on the findings of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry and that they promote race equality both in their work with offenders and in the way they recruit, retrain and promote ethnic minority staff.

And to keep in line with Home Office priorities and guidelines, the report states that the service plans on being active in all 14 Lancashire community safety partnerships, as well as revising arrangements with Lancashire Police for handling high risk offenders.

The report also details how and where the probation service plans on spending its funding, which comes mainly from Lancashire organisations.

If anybody is interested in seeing a summary of the annual report they can write to John Crawforth, Chief Probation Officer, Lancashire Probation Service, Headquarters Office, 99-101 Garstang Road, Preston PR1 1LD.