23 October
Offenders sentenced to community work in Blenheim have been hard at work sprucing up the grounds at the Eastern States Speedway.
Over the last two years around 150 offenders serving community work sentences have been making amends for their offending by working alongside a crew of dedicated volunteers, building tyre walls, planting trees, making gardens, pouring concrete, extending the spectator area and relining all the boundary fences.
Eastern States Speedway Club President Tim Alexander commends the offenders sentenced to community work for their efforts.
“I’ve been overwhelmed by the contributions the community work crews have made to the club. There’s now more track space and seats for spectators to view the events. They take a lot of pride in their work, which shows as many of them have come back after completing their sentences to help the club out on a voluntary basis.
“They’ve worked really well and should be proud to know their efforts will be enjoyed by everyone who visits the raceway this season.”
Community Probation & Psychological Services Service Manager Nathan Harmon says the offenders have done an excellent job at the speedway and have learnt some valuable skills along the way.
“The wide range of different jobs required at the speedway has given the offenders the opportunity to learn valuable work and social skills that could help them to gain employment in the future.
“This project has been a great opportunity for the offenders to give something back to the community. They work really hard and seem to get a real sense of satisfaction knowing their efforts will be appreciated by all the motor sport fans this summer.”
A plaque will be unveiled at the speedway’s opening night this Saturday to commemorate the great efforts put in by the offenders and their supervisors.
Community work sentences require offenders to do unpaid work in the community for non-profit organisations as reparation for their offending. Each year New Zealand communities benefit from almost three million hours of labour supplied through offenders serving their community work sentences.
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