​Latest Figures: 'Sensational success'

Met-Track has continued its sensational levels of success in 2014-15, with over 90% of young Londoners who engaged with us for over a month turning away from offending toward positive lifestyles…
 
The project’s annual evaluation, recently submitted to the National Lottery, underlined the scheme as one of the most successful of its kind in the capital, but one most importantly that is now not only making London a safer place in which to live and work, but which is saving the British taxpayer a small fortune.
 
The project engaged fully with 758 young Londoners between September 2014 and August 2015 against an agreed target of 650.  Of these, 538 were referred to positive pathways and 311 to mainstream activities – again way above targets, underlining just how impactive its work has become.
 
Whilst the project targets principally a reduction in youth offending and anti-social behaviour in London, as Scheme Director John Powell explains, its effect can be far wider:
 
“Young people these days crave excitement in their lives.  They want to be inspired, motivated, but at the same time confident that they can achieve.  Without this they are prime targets for radicalisation, never mind offending.  It is a simple panacea not necessarily for all ills, but certainly for a good number of young Londoners to turn their lives around toward a positive future.”

Met-Track, who celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, is currently funded by the National Lottery, but that support runs out in August 2016 and, despite even more impressive results likely at the end of their third year of support, the scheme stands to close unless further financial support is identified in the next few months.
 
“If we prevent just one young offender going to prison for a year in each of the schemes we operate, that saves the public purse over £2million*, against a pro-rata cost of around £5000, although the actual cost in reality is way lower than that.  It’s a no-brainer - with our intelligence-led approach, the likelihood is that we divert many more than one per scheme away from custody.”
 
Source: Ministry of Justice “Transforming Youth Custody” - 2014

Scheme Director John Powell MBE - Talks of another year of resounding success for Met-Track but remains very concerned about the projects future beyond 2016.