A new report from the Transition to Adulthood Alliance examines how the needs of young adults are met in custody, finding that in many instances prisons fail to provide sufficient activities, education and levels of safety.

The report, ‘Young Adults in Custody: The Way Forward,’ was written by Rob Allen, co-founder of the Justice and Prisons and former Chair of the Transition to Adulthood Alliance. It includes an examination of the situation in other jurisdictions, including Germany, where young adults can be sentenced either as juveniles or adults, depending on the offence and maturity.
Among recommendations included in the report are that young adults be placed near to home, in institutions which provide high-quality activities. Rob Allen identifies effective leadership from governors as key to meeting the distinct needs of young adults – making specific commitments to meeting the health, development and resettlement needs of that group. His report also recommends a wider range of residential placements, age-appropriate discipline systems, targeted staff training, a remodelling of all YOIs as Secure Colleges and research into effective means of violence reduction which don’t reduce activities.
You can read the report in full online here.