Talking at the EU Experts Conference in Wroclaw, Poland, Sally Pettipher, campaign director of the Rugby Football Foundation (RFF), referred to the Teenage Kicks report, which was commissioned by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, and claimed that using sport to help youngsters gives compelling returns.

"We all know that using sport is one of the most successful and innovative ways to prevent crime and aid rehabilitation of offenders," said Pettipher.

"There are plenty of stories of sport keeping young people off the streets and out of prison, engaging them in education, and instilling respect and discipline.

"However, hard evidence is lacking, making it difficult - particularly for non-sports policy areas - to make a convincing case for investment.

"There are evidenced examples from a recent study by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.

"For every pound invested this is the return on investment in savings to society through measures such as the cost of criminal damage and the cost of detaining people in the criminal justice system.

"Recently the RFF and the RFU investigated the impact of rugby in schools - and the findings indicated a correlation between playing rugby and improved exam results and reduced exclusions."

Laureus promote sport as an opportunity for youngsters to engage in teamwork, respect, self-discipline and sportsmanship, with these values also being transferable away from the playing field.

Laureus head of programmes Tom Pitchon added: "Laureus is working to deepen the evidence base for the use of sport as a tool to tackle key social issues worldwide.

"We are delighted to see that the Teenage Kicks report is being used to showcase the impact that sport can have on crime ridden communities not only in the UK, but also internationally."

The Teenage Kicks report was launched earlier this year by Baroness Tanni-Grey Thompson and measured the results of three sports-based projects - the Boxing Academy, Kickz and 2nd chance – with all three being found to be cost effective and successful in reducing crime.

"Cuts to sport and youth projects are a false economy," says report author, Camilla Nevill.

"Sport combined with targeted support has huge potential to engage hard to reach young people, change lives and communities, and provide value for money.

"For example, we found that one Kickz project creates £7 (£11/€8) value for every £1 (£1.60/€1.20) invested, by reducing costs to victims, police, prisons and courts."

The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation now want the government to incorporate sport-based projects into its policy on tackling such criminal activity among youngsters.

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