A bold experiment in the use of drama to rehabilitate persistent young offenders has taken place over the winter months at the South Lanarkshire base of Airborne Initiative (Scotland), the charity funded organisation set up in 1994 to provide residential courses as an alternative to custody.

Airborne Initiative runs nine-week programmes for 18 to 25-year-old offenders. Society may bear the scars of their crimes but so do the youngsters who are convicted. The aftermath of court appearances, penal sentences and employment difficulties feed into a cycle of disadvantage, low self-esteem and further anti-social, self-destructive behaviour. The Airborne Initiative programmes aim to foster social skills, job seeking know-how and the will-power needed to break that cycle.

A cognitive behavioural approach, which encourages self-reflection on the causes and consequences of actions, permeates classroom-based work, structured community living experiences and outdoor activities. Now, for the first time a youth justice drama is being included as an integral part of the programmes.

In a chilly hut in the midst of a bleak landscape, in one of a series of three weekend workshops delivered by drama workers from north and south of the border, some powerful drama was created after a couple of days of ice-breaking, trust building and role-playing exercises.

Two groups were set the task of devising a scenario based on personal issues. Substance abuse emerged as a backdrop for both groups.

In one, the central character found his relationship with his girlfriend was fractured by drugs. The conflict was set amid observations of life in a run-down estate: drug peddlers huddled in doorways, residents expressing outrage at the wave of crime, and the frequent police visits.

In the other, alcohol was the substance that tore lives apart. The central character was an offender (or trainee, as they are called) on a home visit from Glengonnar who could not resist going down to the pub to meet mates, who were keen to goad him into a bout of drunken and disorderly behaviour.

The trainees were then encouraged to act out how each tale could have ended differently if just one action or set of words was changed. What would have happened if, in the first scenario, instead of having an argument with his girlfriend, the character had supported her fight against drugs? In the other scenario, what if the trainee had distanced himself from a situation that could face him with strong temptations?

Another weekend workshop was organised after the trainees had undergone a four-day expedition in a remote area where they were left to look after themselves and make their own decisions. The expedition is one of the big tests of the programme and a rich seam to tap for dramatic reflections.

Airborne Initiative is funded mainly by the Scottish Executive and by local authorities. The drama pilot project has been made possible by an pound;18,000 Scottish Arts Council National Lottery grant, together with support from Queen Margaret University College and the National Youth Theatre. Other drama workers from theatres around Scotland, keen to get experience of working with young offenders, also took part.

The pilot’s project manager, Stephanie Knight of Queen Margaret University College’s drama department, says: “The cognitive behavioural group work is very similar to our community drama development approach. It’s about using a structured approach towards individual empowerment.”

John Hoggarth, associate director of the National Youth Theatre, came to the experiment with previous experience of working with offenders. He says:

“In the penal setting potential can be destroyed. With drama the offenders can dream and play and in the process learn from their experiences.”

Airborne Iniatitive’s programme leader, Sean Benz, has also seen how, through drama, some trainees “have revealed a side of themselves we haven’t seen before”.

The pilot is the brainchild of Airborne Initiative’s general manager, Tony Burley. He says: “The drama is accelerating the personal and social development of the offenders. The outdoor activities do this too, but in a different way.

“What we are doing is using different interventions which reinforce the same message: that offending is not the only choice.”

Airborne Initiative, tel 01864 502340