A leading children’s charity is holding an information drop-in day in Stevenage next week as they appeal for more volunteers who could play an important part in the rehabilitation of offenders.

Ormiston Families is working in partnership with the Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Community Rehabilitation Company Limited to help offenders in the community and in prison, under the umbrella of their transforming rehabilitation service.

The scheme aims to maintain positive relationships between offenders and their families to minimise the impact of negative behaviour on their children.

They also deliver a range of prison and community-based interventions which support the continued development of family relationships throughout the offender’s sentence – which plays a crucial role in reducing the risk of reoffending in the future.

Guy Wiseman, from Hitchin, who is leading the Ormiston service, said: “We work alongside other services to help rehabilitate probation services users in the community and in prisons.

“Some services work with the more obvious problems leading to crime – like alcohol, drugs and homelessness – but the importance of building on people’s strengths and their support network to keep them out of trouble has been overlooked in the past.

“We play a vital role in focusing on probation service users’ relationships and their families – with our staff and volunteers acting as mentors to service users. We help them identify those who can help them avoid the mistakes which led them into trouble.”

Volunteers can contribute by helping someone to write a letter to a family member, or accompanying someone to a community group or sports club to build up their social network. Guy added: “Volunteers are an absolutely vital part of the Ormiston team.”

Ormistion Families information drop-in day takes place from 10am to 3pm next Thursday, April 21, at the Stevenage probation office at Argyle House in Argyle Way. Email guy.wiseman@ormiston.org or call him on 07890 587046 to find out more.