SHOVEL in hand, I listened intently to the instructions of my community punishment supervisor.

I was part of a team of four, tasked with clearing and widening the paths in Leverhulme Park.

It was a laborious job, but I was assured it was not anywhere near as bad as scraping and painting all the park’s railings.

That was just one of the hundreds of jobs carried out this year by convicted criminals sentenced to unpaid work in the community.

Often criticised as a “soft option,” unpaid work, or community service, now performs a vital service to the town.

Bolton’s Unpaid Work Unit, run by Greater Manchester Probation Service, does the jobs that no-one else wants to do.

Whether it is clearing the paths in the town’s parks, tidying up “grot-spots” painting and decorating, flagging, lending a hand in charity shops, or helping run luncheon clubs for elderly and disabled people, the unit helps the town to tick.

But is it a harsh enough punishment?

Bev Phillips, Bolton’s Unpaid Work manager, believes that it is.

“I have worked for this service for 15 years and I can definitely say that it’s not a soft option,” she said.

My community punishment supervisor, Norman Rothwell, agreed.

He is out with teams of offenders every day and sees the basic hard graft which goes into the unit’s work.

“The hardest job we do is cutting the paths because when we came here to Leverhulme Park, it was all grass and we had to find the paths first,” said Mr Rothwell, a former engineer and coal miner.

The work is part of the unit’s “green space” partnership with Bolton Council which sees it take up the jobs which the council cannot afford to prioritise.

Mrs Phillips believes that their work not only benefits the community, but goes towards turning around the life of the offender, and ultimately reducing crime.

She said: “For some people, it is the self-control that’s the hard element, rather than the labour.

“It is teaching basic things, like time-keeping, that normal working people take for granted because we have had good role models to show us what’s accepted.

“For some, it is just getting through the work without using their mobile phone, working safely or not swearing. But it means they are developing a lot of work skills which they can take on afterwards.”

“We have had offenders literally crying because it has turned their lives around.”

One of the central ideas behind unpaid work is to give offenders a sense of achievement and pride, so they will then go on to look after their town.

That was clearly echoed by one offender on my team. The man, who asked not to be named, said he liked the challenge of the hard work, adding: “It does give you a bit of pride.”

Mrs Phillips said: “Some people really don’t want to be here and they can make that quite obvious from the start. But then to see them change and turn it around and see them become a valued member of a team is amazing.”

The unit also helps offenders by getting them on to NVQ courses at Bolton College where they can gain qualifications to help them get away from a life of crime. Mrs Phillips is careful to point out that each offender goes through a vigorous risk assessment and checks to make sure the public is not put at risk.

And those offenders who do not comply with their unpaid work requirement soon find themselves back before the court and often in jail.