A PILOT scheme to provide greater support for young victims of crime has been announced.

Lewisham will be one of five areas in the country to pilot the Home Office’s scheme to encourage greater reporting of crime by young people and reduce offending by providing more support services.

According to the Home Office, young people are less likely to report incidents to the authorities than adults.

Schools, the police, the courts and the voluntary sector will work together to make the criminal justice system less intimidating to young people.

Beginning at the end of next month and costing £104,000, the scheme will include workshops in schools, internet systems for people to report crimes anonymously and one-to-one support for victims.

Lewisham Young Mayor Miguel Gutierrez Astudillo has welcomed the piloting of the scheme in the borough but believes more needs to be done to encourage the reporting of crime.

The 15-year-old said: “I think that most young people don’t want to report crime because they don’t have enough trust in the authorities.

“When young people get stopped and searched they often say they have been harassed and intimidated for no reason.

“This is one issue that I will be discussing with Lewisham Mayor Sir Steve Bullock.”

The six month pilots are part of the £100m Youth Crime Action Plan announced by the Home Office in July and will also run in Derby, Lambeth, Norfolk, and Oxfordshire.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith announced the scheme on a visit to the Lambeth pilot area, on October 22.