by Martin Jefferies

Criminals will be challenged to clean a churchyard in Thanet after residents decided how those on Community Payback should put right their wrongs.

Crime chiefs visited St Peter’s Church on Monday to see offenders on the scheme, all of whom wear high-visibility orange jackets, start to remove litter, fly-tipping and graffiti from the area.

The church clean up was one of five projects put to a public vote by Kent Probation.

Other suggestions included neighbourhoods in Dane Valley and Newington, as well as Northdown Park, Cliftonville, and Dane Park, Margate.

Sarah Billiald, chief officer at Kent Probation, said: “Community Payback is a tough and visible punishment which should reflect the needs of local residents.

“By taking part in the survey, local people have chosen the area of work that we’ll focus on first in Thanet.”

Tiffany Hall, from the Thanet Community Safety Partnership, added: “Many residents regularly walk through the area and will really appreciate the plans for improvement.

“The work being carried out is particularly laborious and this is what people are telling us they want to see.”

The Community Payback scheme is part of a Home Office programme called Justice Seen: Justice Done, which aims to improve public confidence in how crime is tackled and justice delivered.

Every year, more than 55,000 criminals receive Community Payback. Between them, they carry out around six million hours of physical unpaid work.