JOHN Paul Crook loved driving. Drunk or disqualified, it made no difference to him.

He was not bothered by the length of jail sentences, or the prisons in which he had to serve them.

The 26-year-old was caught in a cycle of repeat-offending until last year when he was offered a place at the Airborne Initiative.

Mr Crook, from Broxburn, who graduated from the scheme last summer and now works for a haulage company and is about to set up his own business, said yesterday that the centre saved him.

He said: ''Airborne made me look to the future and put the past behind me. It put me on the straight and narrow.

''The staff really helped me to work things through and their support gave me motivation to change. They helped me to see the consequences of my actions.''

The Airborne Initiative, which can cater for up to 25 male offenders, combines a strict routine of physical activities like hill walking, cycling, canoeing and abseiling with classes in communication, drug awareness and counselling.

However, critics claim it is the easy option compared to prison.

Mr Crook disagrees. He said: ''People say that it is the soft touch but I'll tell you, it's not. It's a lot of hard work. Prison didn't help me at all because I'd been there so many times. It just makes you worse because you think that's all you're good for

and you're just left in your

cell all day.

''It is so boring which makes you feel even more tense and aggravated.''

Mr Crook was also critical of Chancers, the BBC documentary, saying it did

not resemble the centre he attended.

He said: ''I know a few guys who were on the same course as the one in the programme and they told me the boys just acted up for the cameras.

''It made the staff look like they're never there for the guys, which is the opposite of the truth.

''I was gutted and shocked when they told me it was closing.''