A special ceremony was held at Borehamwood Baptist Church recently by the Probation Service in Hertfordshire.

The chair of the Hertfordshire Area Probation Board, Nicholas Moss, presented a plaque to recognise the work of people on Community Punishment Orders, who have been refurbishing the church in Furzehill Road.

Offenders have spent hours and hours decorating the church hall, which is regularly used by pre-school children and a theatre group.

Heather Cameron, from the church, said: "We now have a fantastic, light and colourful hall and we have all been thrilled with the results."

Nicholas Moss, from the Probation Service, said: "Offenders have done thousands of hours of compulsory unpaid work for the communities across Hertfordshire for many years, but we haven't had a permanent way to tell people about it.

"Now we will present plaques for displays at suitable sites so the public can see that when offenders are sentenced to community punishment orders they face tough penalties with significant restrictions on their liberty and with positive outcomes for themselves and their victims."