Setting the youth justice agenda: AYJ briefing for the incoming government
This briefing sets the youth justice agenda for the incoming government. Developed through extensive consultation with our members and informed by evidence from children and young people, it examines key barriers to accomplishing an approach to youth justice that promotes social justice and enables all children to reach their full potential.
We present the changes new Ministers must prioritise in order to achieve a safeguarding response to children at risk, eradicate racial injustice, and ensure the use of custody is a last resort. We recommend that:
A change in oversight and accountability is required to ensure children in or at risk of involvement in the justice system are treated as children.
Resources should be invested in local communities to support their children and aid prevention and desistance from crime, rather than in costly crisis intervention and punitive responses.
Clear strategies are needed to drive policy and practice change to keep children safe, end the imprisonment of children, and target and tackle racial disparities.
We set out a series of reforms that should be included in these strategies, and offer our ongoing support to the government in further developing these much needed reforms through engagement with our expert members.
Read the full briefing: Setting the youth justice agenda: AYJ briefing for the incoming government