A SCHOOLBOY has apologised face-to-face to staff at AFC Darwen after stealing equipment and alcohol from the Anchor Ground.

The 15-year-old, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, took bottles of spirits, a DVD player/karaoke machine, and a microphone from the public announcement system in November.

This week the boy apologised in person to members of the Anchor Road football club, as well as being given a 12-month referral order at court, ordered to pay a £297 fine and given 12 hours reparation work in the community.

Police said such 'restorative justice' meetings were innovative ways of tackling fear of crime, anti-social behaviour and reducing rates of reoffending.

And the boy said apologising had a big effect on him.

He said: "It made me realise that what I did had real consequences on people's lives and I am sorry for what I did.

"I was worried when I knew I had to apologise face-to-face to the lady who works at the football club.

“I didn't know what to expect and I was scared about what she would say and think about me. It made me feel really bad knowing how much work has gone into the football club.

"My dad had to pay the fine so he wasn't pleased with me and has warned me to stay out of trouble."

The boy said he did not hang around with the 'same group' anymore, adding: "I was playing football with some lads at the football club, some of them went in, I followed and things were taken.

" I've just found out that I have passed my GCSE maths so I am looking to start an apprenticeship in accountancy."

Derek Slater, AFC Darwen Football Club’s chairman and secretary, they were interested to hear from the boy and what his motivation was for committing the crime.

He said: “I think meetings like this are a good idea because it encourages the offender to hopefully face up to what they have done and shows them the consequences of their actions.

“We were clear that we didn’t want anyone who had broken into the club to come and do reparation works here, but we have since had young offenders carrying out work at the club, such as painting duties and cleaning which we have been really pleased with.”

The meeting was arranged by Blackburn with Darwen Council’s Youth Offending Team.