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Corporate Plan 2018-2023

As NIACRO faces into the new planning period, our long experience assures us of the ongoing need for the services that we and others in the voluntary and community sector provide. It also evidences the resilience of the organisation; its ability to come through difficult times and the support our mission attracts from a wide range of stakeholders. 

The organisation registered with the Charity Commission in 2016 and the aims, as agreed to meet the public benefit test, are:

  • To alleviate need and disadvantage through the provision of services, assistance, advocacy and representation to care for, resettle and rehabilitate offenders and ex-offenders, alleged offenders, persons who may be at risk of becoming offenders, and to care for the victims of crime and the families of such categories of person.
  • To work for the prevention of and reduction of crime for the benefit of the public of Northern Ireland.

These aims locate us within criminal justice, but also give us the opportunity to test work in the area of early intervention and supporting people to desist from crime.  Each year the Executive Committee will submit a report to the Charity Commission to confirm that the work of the organisation continues to fit within these two broad aims.  

As with all public services, the charitable sector comes under scrutiny and in NIACRO we strive to evidence our provision of quality services through external validation – Investors in People, Investing in Volunteers and more recently Investing in Children. The Criminal Justice Inspectorate has positively referenced us on numbers of occasions. We will also continue to seek quality marks for particular services.

In order to deliver the right services in the right way, we depend on the skills and versatility of our staff, volunteers and members whose passion for the work shines through all the time. The asset base of the organisation also means we can face uncertainties with a measured response.

We will continue to trial new approaches; sometimes seeking to mainstream them, and on other occasions letting them go but holding on to the learning. We will continue to identify what policy changes are needed by listening to services users’ experiences and focusing on what would make a difference to them. Our policy asks will inform our engagement with public representatives and policy makers. 

In preparing for this plan, we met with: criminal justice statutory bodies; departmental and non-departmental public bodies; politicians; community and voluntary sector bodies with whom we partner or cross refer; members; volunteers; staff; and, of course, those who use our services. 

We are constantly reminded that resources are scarce. We know that’s the reality, and the intention of all our work is to see a reduction in the amount of criminal justice funding that is tied up in preventable service provision. We support the transformation of justice, embracing early interventions for the benefit of children and families and as an approach to tackling antisocial and other behaviour. By applying a problem solving approach we believe we can do better with less; reducing crime and the number of its victims.

You can read our Corporate Plan for 2018-2023 in full here.