A NATIONAL scheme to cut re-offending and re-conviction rates among young adults is being piloted in North Yorkshire.

The programme will see offenders aged between 18 and 20 given high intensity community sentences, combining punishment, rehabilitation and reparation to change and control their behaviour.

The eventual aim is to get them back into employment or education.

North Yorkshire's Probation Service has been selected to run a national pilot for the project, which is known as Intensive Change and Control.

The county's probation area board will be working with the police, Securicor and Job Centre Plus staff to try stop offenders from re-offending and reintegrate them into the community in the long term.

After they are sentenced, offenders will be required to take part in 25 hours of structured activities per week.

This time will be made up of community punishment hours, electronic monitoring (tagging) and attendance at offending behaviour programmes.

There will also be sessions with staff from JobCentre Plus to look at employment, education and training.

Each offender will be assigned a personal mentor, who will be responsible for supporting them through the variety of activities that they will have to participate in.

This work will also bring together a number of voluntary organisations with specialist skills and expertise to work with offenders to tackle a range of offence-related problems.

At the moment, the programme is supported by Safer York Partnership and North Yorkshire Crime and Disorder Partnerships.

Roz Brown, chief officer of North Yorkshire Probation Area, said: "I am delighted that the North Yorkshire Probation Area has been selected to run this programme and to make a substantial contribution to reducing reconviction rates among this age group."

Terry Ewington, chairman of the North Yorkshire Probation Board, said: "We welcome the opportunity to deliver Intensive Change and Control for the courts.

"This builds on the success of the Persistent Offender Project running in York and ensures that this service is able to offer the courts a range of intensive sentences."