They have done the crime but now a group of offenders are putting in the time to give back to the Paeroa community.

Tomorrow morning is the official opening of the Paeroa Community Vegetable Garden which is situated behind the police station on Willoughby St.

The Paeroa Community Vegetable Garden will be officially opened tomorrow at 10am. Photo: Supplied

The garden was built and planted, and will be maintained in the future by offenders completing community work sentences.

It falls under Department of Corrections' Work and Living Skills programme which gives offenders basic work and living skills training to help keep them from re-offending.

Community Corrections Paeroa acting service manager Scott Aitken says the garden was established on a vacant disused lot provided to the organisation by police.

'The offenders have turned a piece of disused land into something than can produce vegetables and help members of the community.

'I think the garden speaks for itself in terms of what we want to do in educating offenders and allowing them to give back to the community.”

Along with police the organisation received support from Bunnings and Paeroa Home Hardware who provided building materials, plus the Paeroa Garden Centre who donated plants, seeds and fertilizer.

Scott says many will benefit from the garden once it starts producing and they will eventually designate a day for the public to come down and pick vegetables.

Produce will also be donated to local nursing homes, elderly or low income families, plus the food bank run by the Paeroa Community Support Trust.

On top of the benefit to the community, the offenders involved have also created their own sense of achievement and self-worth, says Scott.

'It gives them skills to use at home and if they can grow their own vegetables it reduces the potential financial hardship of grocery bills, which could lead to a reduction in re-offending.

'These skills they have learned they can also pass on to their whanau.”

Tomorrow's opening will start at 10am with a karakia to be delivered by local iwi.

Community Corrections district manager Rowan Balloch will speak during the ceremony and will be followed up with a tour of the garden with Hauraki mayor John Tregidga.

All members of the community are more-than-welcome to join them for the ceremony and tour of the garden.

Scott says tomorrow would not have been possible without the local community and business who offered support and supplies to construct the garden.

'And the offenders themselves for putting in the manpower and getting it done.”

The official opening of the Paeroa Community Vegetable Garden takes place behind the Paeroa Police Station on Willoughby St at 10am.

For more information call Community Corrections Paeroa on 862-7449