Support and assistance

What our women’s justice team is 

Our women’s justice team provides social work services for women involved in the justice system.

The team is staffed by women only and work with women during all stages of the criminal justice process. 

It works within a trauma informed approach, recognising the different and often complex circumstances and experiences of women involved within the criminal justice system.

What services the team provide

Services include:

• justice social work reports 
• diversion from prosecution
• bail services
• Community Payback Orders
• Structured Deferred Sentences
• Statutory and voluntary throughcare services.

How to contact us

If you want to find out more or discuss what services could be available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

What unpaid work is

Unpaid work is a requirement that can be made as part of aa Community Payback Order or it can be imposed on its own.

This gives someone the opportunity to ‘pay back’ their local communities for the harm their offence has caused.

The court can impose between 20 to 300 hours of unpaid work, which the person will need to complete within a specified timeframe. Unpaid work does not replace paid employment.

Unpaid work should:

• help people to develop and improve their social skills
• be of benefit to the local community, by taking place through a community group or project, or not for profit organisation
• be in a safe environment.

Levels of unpaid work

The court can sentence 2 levels of unpaid work requirement:

• Level 1: 20 to 100 hours - this is normally completed within 3 months unless specified by the court. This is a punishment by the court and can be imposed without requesting a social work report
• Level 2: 101 to 300 hours - this is a direct alternative to custody and is normally completed within 6 months unless specified by the court. This order requires a justice social work report to inform sentencing.

Types of unpaid work

Our justice social work service ensures that unpaid work benefits Renfrewshire’s communities. 

It also provides a learning experience for the offender to positively connect them to the community they may have harmed.

The types of work carried out includes:

• litter picking
• clearing and maintaining walkways, public routes, and cycle paths
• clearing snow
• painting and decorating community projects
• joinery activities
• environmental projects
• gardening
• placements in public, private and charitable organisations
• voluntary activities. 

Other activity

‘Other activity’ can also be provided as part of an unpaid work requirement.

These activities are aimed to help the person to develop helpful skills for the future or support underlying issues that lead to their offending behaviour. 

Other activities must be agreed with a supervising officer and can include personal and practical support, training, and interventions aimed to improve their personal circumstances. 

The maximum time allowed is 30 hours or less if under 100 hours is imposed.

How unpaid work is assigned

The person is assessed by our justice social work service for their general suitability to carry out unpaid work prior to court sentencing. 

Before starting a placement, a further suitability assessment is carried out and the person is matched to a suitable and available placement. 

How to request unpaid work for your community

Unpaid work can be requested by anyone in the community. 

It must directly benefit the wider community and not replace anything that is normally paid work.

To request unpaid work to help in your area, contact our justice social work service by:

• email unpaidworkjobreferrals@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

How to provide unpaid work placements

We welcome any requests or offers for potential new placements for those subject to unpaid work. 

If you're a not for profit, charity, community group or social enterprise and feel you provide unpaid work placements, contact our justice social work service by:

• email unpaidworkjobreferrals@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

All new placements require certain checks which our team can discuss with you, including health and safety, and disclosure checks. 

You can also tell us if you have any feedback on existing projects.

How to contact us

If you want to find out more, share your experiences, or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

What happens if diversion from prosecution is granted

If you’re considered suitable for diversion, our justice social work service can work with you for up to 3 months to focus on any personal circumstances or any other issues which may be leading you to offend.

During this time, the Procurator Fiscal will defer a decision on prosecution while they wait for the outcome of this intervention.

The service completes an assessment report if you have been referred for diversion.

Once complete, our service shares a report with the Procurator Fiscal commenting on the work you have done and the commitment you have showed.

If the actions you have taken are likely to prevent or reduce future offending, the Procurator Fiscal will usually divert you from prosecution for the alleged offence.

If the service report believes you have not made satisfactory progress, the Procurator Fiscal may decide to progress with prosecution.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

In some cases, the Procurator Fiscal may decide to divert a case for social work intervention.

This is when a person is referred to our justice social work service to address the causes of their offending behaviour instead of a criminal prosecution being pursued.

Diversion may be considered in cases involving young people or first offenders for minor offences, or where it is decided by the Procurator Fiscal that it is not in the public interest for a prosecution.

Its aim is to prevent people entering the justice system unnecessarily and to prevent further offending.

What bail and bail supervision is

After an arrest and appearance at court, the court may decide that an accused person is suitable to be released on bail or bail supervision.

Bail and bail supervision serve different purposes in the legal process.

Bail is a legal condition that allows an accused person to remain in the community while awaiting trial, provided they comply with certain conditions.

Bail supervision is a social work or third sector service that supports individuals to comply with the conditions of their bail. This often involves regular meetings with a bail supervisor to monitor compliance and provide necessary support.

If bail is granted, the person is released on certain conditions until a further appearance at court.

Our justice social work service may be asked to provide an assessment for bail suitability and bail supervision. This would involve interviewing the accused person to discuss their current circumstances, including family, employment, and accommodation details.

The aim of the service is to reduce the number of accused people held in custody on remand, provided any potential risks can be managed safely outside of prison.

The service provides updates to the court on the person’s compliance with the conditions of their supervised bail.

What happens if bail supervision is granted

If you’re accused of a crime and given bail supervision, you must agree to follow support and monitoring, and any other conditions imposed by the court.

You will make a minimum of 3 contacts each week with your bail supervision officer – or another worker outlined in your conditions – for the first month. This will reduce to 1 contact per week as a minimum.
 

What happens if bail or bail supervision conditions are broken

If you do not follow the bail conditions set by the court, the court will be advised and you could be remanded to prison.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

You can contact us if you need to talk to us about your Business Improvement District (BID) levy for Paisley town centre, including billing and querying the charges.

Before you contact us, you can:

• find out more about the Paisley town centre Business Improvement District (BID), including the ballot information
• view the BID area (Paisley First).

It helps if you can give us your BID reference number (find it at the top of your most recent bill).

Use the business rates online form to contact us. Select the option to 'Make a General Enquiry - BID (Business improvement District) - Paisley First'.

Contact us about BID

We can offer a range of support for vulnerable people who may need help living independently but do not need long-term personal care.

Our housing support team can help people or families who:

• are at risk of losing their home or becoming homeless again
• struggle to keep a home or maintain a tenancy due to a disability, illness, or addiction issues
• are a victim of domestic abuse.

This support can include:

• advice on managing your money, bills, and budget
• help with filling in forms, writing letters and making benefit claims
• help to improve your skills and access employment opportunities
• help to manage a tenancy
• assistance to contact people, services, and other bodies who can help you.

We offer a temporary support plan for up to 2 years, with a review every 6 months.  

If you need more support after this time, we’ll help you find long-term services.

We have other support available if you’re homeless now or will become homeless in the next 8 weeks.

You could get housing support if you’re over 16 years old and:

• are at risk of being homeless
• are disabled
• have chronic illness
• have learning difficulties
• have mental health issues
• have issues with drugs or alcohol
• are an ex-offender
• are fleeing domestic abuse.

Who cannot get housing support

We cannot help people with personal care needs, like dressing, washing, or preparing food.

We can assist you if you need any further information on accessing personal care. We can also arrange a care assessment on your behalf.

Alternatively, you can contact our adult services request team to make a care referral by phoning 0300 300 1380.

Download and fill in our housing support referral form.

Send your completed form to us by email to housingsupportreferral@renfrewshire.gov.uk. 

By phone

Phone us on 0300 300 0344.

A housing support coordinator will talk to you and support you to make a referral.

You can refer yourself or someone else to our housing support service.

We’ll assess your referral and allocate it to a housing support officer within 3 working days of receiving it.

The housing support officer will contact you within 3 working days of receiving the referral. They will agree a date and time to meet with you.

During this meeting, the officer will discuss your circumstances, past experiences, your current situation, and what you may need help with.  

We’ll agree a support plan with you within 2 working days of making first contact with you.

For more information about housing support, you can contact our housing support coordinator by:

• phone: 0300 300 0344
• email: housingsupportreferral@renfrewshire.gov.uk

There is no charge for our housing support service.

Our local housing teams provide a wide range of services, information and support for council tenants in Renfrewshire.

Local housing teams are responsible for managing council-owned tenancies and the areas they’re located. 

What our local housing teams can help with

Our local housing teams are there for council tenants to contact if they need direct help with something, such as:

• rent enquiries
• issuing new rent payment cards
• providing paper forms for setting up direct debits and standing orders, for you to complete and return
• rent arrears and managing your rent debt to us
• investigating noise nuisance and antisocial behaviour, if caused by a council tenant
• keeping areas clean and tidy by investigating improper waste disposal
• referring you to different services, depending on your needs and circumstances
• garden assistance
• home contents insurance
• housing application enquiries, including sheltered housing
• telling us about a change in circumstances, such as tenancy changes or someone moving in or out of your home
• ending your tenancy
• getting permissions to make changes inside or outside your council house, such as interior alterations or putting up a fence
• other permissions, such as having a pet
• applying for Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP).

What our local housing teams cannot help with

Our local housing teams cannot help with:

• repairs - tenants should report any issues on repairs by phoning 0300 300 0300.
• antisocial behaviour issues in non-council managed areas – these should be reported to the police or our community support wardens by phoning 0300 300 0380 (option 1) or email wardens.es@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

We have local housing teams in:

• Johnstone
• Paisley North
• Paisley South
• Renfrew.

These areas cover council-owned tenancies in:

Johnstone

• Johnstone
• Linwood
• Houston
• Bridge of Weir
• Spateston
• Kilbarchan
• Elderslie
• Lochwinnoch

Paisley North

• Ferguslie
• Ferguslie Park
• Shortroods
• Seedhill
• Whitehaugh
• Todholm
• Calside
• Ralston
• Paisley West End

Paisley South

• Foxbar
• Glenburn
• Lochfield
• Dykebar
• Hunterhill
• Neilston Road/Alice Street area
• Barterholm

Renfrew

• Gallowhill
• Kirklandneuk
• Moorpark
• Renfrew Centre
• Inchinnan
• Arkleston
• Bishopton
• Dargavel.

If you're a council tenant, you can email your local housing team:

• Johnstone areas: johnstone.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• Paisley North areas: paisley.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• Paisley South areas: paisley.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• Renfrew areas: renfrew.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk

By phone

You can phone us on 0300 300 0222 and choose the option for the local housing team that covers your area.

In-person appointment

You can book an in-person appointment for our Paisley or Johnstone office.

You must book an appointment in advance by phoning us on 0300 300 0222.

Paisley office:

Renfrewshire Council 
Renfrewshire House
Cotton Street
Paisley
PA1 1LE.

Johnstone office:

Johnstone Town Hall
 25 Church Street
Johnstone
PA5 8FA.

Let us know if you need information in other formats, including:

• Braille
• large print
• tape or CD
• another language
• a signer or interpreter.

To get information in another format:

• phone: 0300 300 0222
• email your local housing team at the email address listed further up on this page.

If you’re a council tenant, you could get help with your garden, including grass cutting and hedge trimming.

The service includes cutting and edging grass every 2 weeks between April and October,  

We’ll take away the clippings afterwards.

We’ll also cut your hedges twice a year between May and July, and between August and November.

This service is available free for council tenants, where each adult in the household is:

• aged 60 years old or over
• under 60 years old, with a disability and can't look after the garden.

If you’re under 60 years old with a disability, you'll need to provide us with supporting medical evidence for this.

If you’re over 60, you do not need to provide us with any evidence or proof of age.

Contact your local Housing Officer if you think you're eligible for this service:

• paisley.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• johnstone.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• renfrew.hps@renfrewshire.gov.uk 

Or phone 0300 300 0222.

We’ll check your application within 10 working days and let you know by letter if you’re eligible or not for the service.

If you are, we’ll come to cut your grass and hedges within a few weeks of you getting your confirmation letter. 

The exact date will depend on the grass cutting schedule in your area. The date may also vary due to weather conditions or other factors.

If you apply outside of the garden servicing season (April to October), your first cutting will take place during April.  

There is no cost for council tenants who qualify for the assistance.