NICRO projects and programmes encourage people to move from being victims of circumstance to creators of opportunity.

NICRO is unique. An outright leader in its field, with approximately 185 staff and close to 600 volunteers offering services in all nine provinces, it is the only national non-government organisation providing comprehensive crime prevention services throughout South Africa. NICRO’s four national programmes are offered by dynamic teams in urban, peri-urban and rural areas.

The policies of restorative justice (restoring the balance affected by crime) and people-centred development guide all services. NICRO is committed to achieving its vision of a safer country where the fear of crime and violence no longer governs, a country where people are able to live safely in their homes and move freely around their neighbourhoods. It is our firm belief that, together with the people of South Africa, we can realise our dream of a nation united in safety, mutual respect, dignity and compassion.

NICRO has been called upon to ensure wise and mature action to achieve this dream. Something IS being done, and it works.

NICRO projects challenge offenders to take responsibility for their actions, support victims of crime, assist in small business development and offer the opportunity for constructive rather than destructive living. NICRO's high success rates bear testimony to the impact of the work.

Message from the Deputy Executive Director: Ms Celia Dawson (2006)

There is no escaping the attention and energy focussed on all issues related to crime in our country. The crime rate, the violent nature of crime, and the impunity with which crime is committed, especially against vulnerable groups such as innocent children, are exercising the minds of all stakeholders, politicians, service providers and citizenry alike. At NICRO it is no different. The past year has witnessed our most concerted efforts geared towards resolute attempts to ensure that the endeavours in which we engage, in terms of our vision and mission, are the best responses that we are able to offer.

During the year under review, programme design and development has, as a result, been at the forefront of NICRO’s activities. Having completed our programme review, and the restructuring of our service delivery model, the organisation has concentrated on establishing a framework for our programme protocol and for developing various new programmatic interventions.

Our programme design, together with the development protocol, guides us in the steps to be taken in developing an appropriate and effective intervention model: a model that is based on recognised problem areas and needs; best reflects practice and theory; can be measured; and will have impactful outcomes. This is also completely in line with good governance, which requires of us to be accountable for what we do, and to ensure that we do no harm when working with individuals who are vulnerable and disempowered.

New programmes have been developed and tested. These include a specialist programme for the perpetrators of intimate partner violence; a substance abuse programme for young offenders in conflict with the law; a family journey programme targeting young offenders exhibiting serious anti-social behaviour as well as their parents; a sex offenders programme for young people charged with crimes of this nature; and a parenting programme to assist parents with the parenting of young people at risk. Currently we are also in the process of developing a specific intervention to deal with young violent offenders, utilising non-custodial and restorative approaches, as an alternative to prison.

Moreover, NICRO is currently in the process of developing an assessment tool to comprehensively assess the needs and requirements of all beneficiaries of our diversion services, to best inform us of what interventions to offer. This work, which we have embarked upon together with a UNISA doctoral student from Pretoria, will simultaneously inform and ensure a vital contribution towards best practice in South Africa.

NICRO was commissioned by the Department of Social Development to research and develop minimum standards of service delivery for diversion, an undertaking that has been successfully completed in partnership with the HSRC. The organisation is currently developing a user-friendly booklet for practitioners, as well as compliance indicators, to assist the Department in regulating the practice of diversion.

NICRO has also embarked on a concerted campaign to promote the concept of alternative sentencing, as well as a determined drive to assist the courts in the implementation of non-custodial sentencing options. This initiative was launched at a three-day conference, conducted in partnership with the Department of Justice and others in October 2005, and has resulted in the subsequent identification of four pilot sites. Non-custodial sentencing options will be implemented at these sites to promote the utilisation of these options and to test their impact. Strong partnerships have been established with the Department of Justice and various magistrates’ courts, and NICRO looks forward to steady progress in terms of these highly significant endeavours within the next year.