The Oasis Charitable Trust, a charity focused on helping more than thirty communities across the United Kingdom, has been awarded a contract, which will transform the Medway Secure Training Centre in Kent into the first British “secure school” by the end of 2020.
The idea behind this project is to create a safe learning environment for young offenders, who are still in their school years. To aid Oasis in this noble mission, the UK Ministry of Justice has allocated five million pounds (GBP5m) to support the project.
In 2016, concerns for young offenders were on the rise, after a report by Charlie Taylor, an expert on behaviors, revealed that nine out of ten young offenders were expelled from school due to absence.
Since that report was released, the UK government has been actively trying to figure out a solution to the problem of education among young offenders. The Oasis contract is a step towards bettering the school environment for children and young adults with behavioral issues, which led to their offender status.
According to Rev. Steve Chalke, who is the creator of the Oasis Trust:
every young person is capable of change and of making more positive choices about their life and their future.
The Medway Secure Training Centre is part of a nationwide program initiated by the Ministry of Justice, which will aim to emphasize on the education and health of young offenders so that they have better prospects of returning to a healthy lifestyle. The main goal of these “secure schools” will be to help pupils go through their exams successfully, and attain a high-school diploma. This level of education is a necessity for the further development of students in universities, colleges, or personal careers.
