Agenda item

To scrutinise the effectiveness of the measures outlined in the Youth Justice Plan to address youth offending in Rotherham.

The Service Manager (Evidence Based Hub & YOT) gave a presentation which outlined the role of the Youth Offending Team.  The YOT worked alongside statutory partners including Police, South Yorkshire Probation Trust and the NHS, together with a wide range of contracted Voluntary and Community Sector organisations to achieve the national youth justice strategic objectives which were to:

·         Prevent Offending

·         Reduce Re-Offending

·         Increase Victim and Public Confidence

·         Ensure the Safe and Effective use of Custody

Rotherham YOT was located in CYPS within the Early Help Service and was governed by the YOT Management Board and Safer Rotherham Partnership. The paper referred to the Rotherham Youth Justice Plan 2019-21, which was approved by the Chair of the YOT Management Board and Chair of the Safer Rotherham Partnership and signed off by the Youth Justice Board (YJB) on 3^rd September 2019.

The following areas were highlighted as working well:

·         The rate of First Time Entrants (FTEs) for Rotherham continued to fall significantly. It was suggested that the lower rate in Rotherham was due to the work undertaken to triage and assess young people at an early stage prior to their entry into the Criminal Justice System.

·         Rotherham continued to have Custody rates below national and regional figures.

·         The voice of young people was strong within the YOT and young people attended and presented at the YOT Board when available.

·         The YOT Board Chair was proactive and sought innovative ways to share good practice.

·         There were good relationships with the YJB Regional leads who provided essential peer support and challenge.

·         There were Child Criminal Exploitation pathways in place across the sub-region with outreach, intelligence sharing and partnership working.

The paper referred to the YJB Peer review  in January 2017 which noted that the Rotherham YOT was performing well in relation to reducing reoffending and the use of custody. The review team were impressed with the focus that partners in Rotherham had placed on the service and the local youth justice system.

In respect of areas for improvement, the Looked After Children status of the offending cohort continued to increase as a percentage from 20% in Q4 18/19 to 25% in Q1 2019/20. It was noted that this was a small cohort and therefore, any increase would be reflected as a large percentage change. Reoffending rates also continued to be of concerns,   and it was acknowledged that this cohort of young people had entrenched behaviours and complex needs with a propensity to reoffend more often. However, programmes had been developed to address Barriers to Learning to reduce the number of NEET young people and increase access to counselling. YOT staff were encouraged to support families to attend the range of parenting programmes available through the Evidence Based Hub.

Reference was made to the detailed Action Plan that addressed key priorities of the Police and Crime Commissioner, the Safer Rotherham Partnership and the YOT Board. Progress was measured and reported to the board at quarterly intervals.

Further work was also underway to better identify the needs of the cohort, particularly in relation to Special Education Need (SEN) or unmet needs.

The following points were raised and clarified:

Examples were given of how different agencies worked together to disrupt anti-social behaviour to prevent escalation and possible entry into the youth justice system. This partnership working included housing officers, the police and police community service officers and fire officers along with early help workers.

Further clarification was sought in respect of lower rate of entrants in Rotherham and the evidence which supported the assertion that Rotherham was performing better than other South Yorkshire authorities. Details were given of the assessment and triage process, which contributed to lower levels of entrants into the system.

Details were given as to how risks around child criminal exploitation and peer radicalisation were assessed for first time entrants and re-offenders? Assurance was given that there was good oversight of the Prevent and criminal exploitation agenda. Examples were given of the assessment process, restorative justice in relation to hate crime and work undertaken with young people in schools.

Reference was made to whether the findings of 2017 Peer Review were still pertinent and the timeliness of data reported. It was highlighted that work was underway to track data in a more timely way. The Youth Justice Board had not yet considered commissioning another peer review to affirm that practice and processes remained robust, however assurances were given that the service was ‘inspection ready’.

Thanks were given to the officer who had attended the meeting whilst on annual leave.

In summing up, the Chair referred to the earlier input from a service user and the points raised during that discussion.

Resolved:

1)    That the Deputy Leader explores if further measures can be taken to identify Council apprenticeship opportunities for young people involved in the youth justice system and engage the wider business community in similar initiatives such as job fayres.

2)    That the involvement of service users in offering awareness raising in schools and/or peer support to other young offenders or those at risk of offending, be explored.