Residents ‘over the moon’ after Immediate Justice transforms war memorial

A war memorial has been given a much-needed makeover thanks to a new scheme allowing Nottinghamshire residents to identify public spaces that can be cleaned up by people doing community reparation.

The latest Immediate Justice Day of Action has seen significant improvements made to the Ladybrook war memorial in Mansfield.

Three service users took part in this meaningful community effort, working hard to trim hedges, pick up litter, jet wash the memorial itself, and tidy up the surrounding area, leaving it looking completely transformed.

This effort was the result of a public referral made through the new ‘Fix My Street’ website – the first of its kind since the service went live.

The ‘Fix My Street’ platform – which can be accessed on the website of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner - enables residents to highlight areas in need of attention, allowing offenders who have committed antisocial behaviour to make amends by carrying out vital community reparation within days of their offence.

Deborah Brown, Treasurer of Ladybrook Friends Community Group, who made the Fix My Street referral, said she was over the moon and gave her thanks to the Immediate Justice team following the clean-up.

She said: “This project has given the look of the memorial a very cleaned up and cared for appeal that will hopefully now be somewhere that the community can go to sit, take a tranquil moment, and remember loved ones whilst enjoying the newly improved surroundings.

“The team has done a beautiful job of cutting back brambles and generally tidying up and hopefully they were able to reflect on their lives whilst doing something positive for the community.

“I would like to say a massive thank you to all the team that helped not only with the clean-up but for allowing this to be possible to help with the whole appearance of the local community sites.”

The Immediate Justice scheme, spearheaded by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire, ensures that individuals who commit low-level offences or engage in antisocial behaviour swiftly take responsibility for their actions by contributing to the upkeep of local communities. The initiative focuses on improving public spaces while offering offenders an opportunity for rehabilitation and positive contribution.

The work carried out at the Ladybrook war memorial by the three service users on the Day of Action, which took place on Tuesday 10 September, had an immediate impact.

Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner Gary Godden said: "It’s fantastic to see how much of a difference the Immediate Justice Day of Action has made to the Ladybrook war memorial in Mansfield.

“The transformation is truly impressive, and it highlights the positive impact that this scheme can have on local communities. What’s more, this was the first project driven by a Fix My Street referral, which shows how residents can directly influence the work that’s being done and ensure that areas of concern are tackled quickly and effectively.

"Immediate Justice is about taking swift action to address antisocial behaviour and low-level crime while giving offenders the chance to contribute positively to the community. The work done at the war memorial is a great example of how this scheme is delivering real results and helping to restore pride in our public spaces."

The Immediate Justice programme is an important tool in tackling antisocial behaviour in Nottinghamshire. Offenders involved in the scheme are required to complete visible, meaningful tasks that give back to the community while teaching valuable lessons about responsibility and the consequences of their actions.

Brendan Gaynor, Inspector for Immediate Justice at Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Our latest Day of Action has a real focus on a war memorial, which is really important to the local community here in Mansfield. Immediate Justice is very much centred around completing reparatory work in the community along a learning or rehabilitative element.

“That learning process is incredibly important to us from a prevention perspective, in the sense that we don’t want to see these same people coming back and making the same mistakes again.

“Immediate Justice enables them to learn and reflect on their decision making and behaviours at the same time as giving back to the community, so from a policing perspective it gets to the heart of preventing re-offending.”

Whether it's cleaning up graffiti, picking up litter, or restoring community spaces like the Ladybrook war memorial, these tasks help service users see the positive impact they can have when they engage constructively with their surroundings. Since the launch of Immediate Justice, numerous areas across Nottinghamshire have benefited from similar initiatives.

These projects are designed not only to make public spaces more pleasant and welcoming but also to involve residents in identifying priority areas and helping to guide the work that needs to be done.

The Fix My Street web page, powered by the SocietyWorks platform, gives residents the opportunity to pinpoint areas in their community that need attention. Once a referral is made, the Immediate Justice team assesses the location and decides on an appropriate course of action.

Councillor Angie Jackson, Portfolio Holder for Health, Wellbeing and Safer Communities at Mansfield District Council, praised the Immediate Justice project whilst seeing it action.

“I think Immediate Justice is really important on two levels. The first is being able to give something back to the local community that the offender may have wronged,” said Councillor Jackson.

“Secondly, what’s very important is that they embark on a programme of education and training connected to this so that they can make better choices in the future. So it’s good for the community but also good for the offender, hopefully setting them off on a different, more positive path.”

In the case of the Ladybrook war memorial, the referral was made in response to concerns over the state of the memorial and surrounding area, and a team was quickly dispatched to address the issue.

The Ladybrook war memorial project is just one of many community initiatives undertaken by service users through Immediate Justice. The programme is ongoing, with further Days of Action planned across Nottinghamshire in the coming months.

Gareth Fuller Chair Mansfield branch of the Royal British Legion said: “It was good to see the hard work that the service users were doing to clear the area. This cleanup should be seen as an opportunity to re-commit to ensuring it stays looking renewed and certainly a lot better than before, making it an even more special place to honour our fallen."

To report an area near you for a clean-up, or to find out more, visit www.immediatejusticenotts.co.uk (opens in new window).