Could community service assistance smarten up the Conquest?

The letter from Mr Healey in last week’s edition raises an interesting point; what actually happens to those subject to community service orders? Every week you run a regular column on the exploits of local malefactors sentenced to umpteen hours of community service. I have never yet been able to find out what real community benefits arise from all of this available labour? What do these people do to effectively compensate the community for their bad behaviour? How, and to who, does anyone apply for access to this potentially beneficial workforce?

A few years ago I was dismayed by the shabby appearance of the Conquest Hospital, the outside cladding looks, or rather is, dirty, shabby and neglected. The light-well gardens inside are an unkempt jungle. I wrote to the chief executive and suggested the hospital apply to the court for community service assistance to smarten the place up, not a skilled labour task, a bucket of soapy water would be a good start, but the reply came that they had an alternative plan.

Two years on, and different CEOs, the poor Conquest still looks just as scruffy and unkempt.

There are so many other parts of Hastings/Bexhill that share this aura of grubby neglect, perhaps you could include to your column of bad boys’ sentencing what they actually do in the hours they are supposed to perform community service?