Through the Howard League’s legal and participation work, it has identified that the sentencing of young adults is a pivotal stage that is little understood but has life-changing consequences.

As part of its work with T2A the Howard League is exploring this area in depth and has produced a number of publications and short films to embed the growing consensus that young adults require a distinct approach within the CJS.

The films provide practitioners, lawyers and sentencers with authoritative information on the distinct needs and characteristics of young adults in the criminal justice system. Watch the short films.

Leaders Unlocked supports young people from diverse backgrounds to influence change on the issues that affect their lives. It was founded by Rose Dowling in 2015 with the belief that any young person could become a leader if the right conditions were created for them to thrive.

Since 2015 Leaders Unlocked projects have provided young people with the space, support, and tools they need to lead. Completely youth-led, Leaders Unlocked enables young people to define their own priorities, produce their own research, develop recommendations and co-produce solutions.

In 2020, Leaders Unlocked established a Youth Board – a group of motivated young leaders representing all of its work areas: criminal justice, education, health, and policing. These young leaders are helping to drive Leaders Unlocked’s growth as an organisation – working on its strategy, business development, partnerships, media and communications. The Youth Board of Leaders Unlocked have co-produced and authored this Impact Report – a vibrant record of its collective achievement over the last 6 years.

Follow @LeadersUnlocked

The new evidence review by the national justice charity Revolving Doors for T2A (Transition to Adulthood), reveals that delivering tailored interventions that meet the health and human needs of young adults can turn young people’s lives around, reduce crime and improve public safety.

The review brings together the latest evidence and emerging good practice that are shown to support young adults to move away from the criminal justice system. It highlights the need to scale up investment in police assisted diversion services to meet the ever-rising time demand on policing and courts.

Evidence from this review recommends that police-assisted diversion services should:

• Avoid prosecutions for low-level and non-violent crimes where possible to have the most impact
• Deliver tailored responses to meet the specific needs of young adults’ health, human needs and maturity
• Apply trauma-informed approaches to understand root causes of crime and minimise harm
• Adopt a gender-specific and culturally competent approach to achieve equable outcomes for young adults in the criminal justice system
• Promote a pro-social identity that builds on their strengths and abilities and empowers them to shape their own future
• Link young adults and their families into sustainable and long-term support to prevent future crises.

Pavan Dhaliwal, Chief Executive of Revolving Doors Agency, said,

“The benefits of out of court disposals are generally well known but what is often lacking is evidence about works about these programmes specifically and importantly given the fact that they make up around a third of all police cases, what works in reducing reoffending in young adults.

This new review shines a light on interventions that are most effective for diverting young adults into support. It pushes the New Generation agenda forward into practical steps towards reducing reoffending and offers the chance for young adults to turn their lives around.

With magistrates’ courts backlogs expected to rise ten-fold, it is vital that police and crime commissioners invest in diversion services so that the police can deal with low-level crime effectively.”

Natasha, New Generation young adult campaigner, said,

“What made the biggest difference for me was having a consistent support worker who worked with me at every step of my journey, taught me how to notice patterns, followed up after I left the service, and encouraged me to seek help. I liked how they did not judge me or make me feel less than. This made me see the light at the end of the tunnel and push me to make the positive changes and embark on my journey to change.”

Joyce Moseley, Chair, T2A said:

“T2A (Transition to Adulthood) has been working to develop and collate best practice evidence from the UK and globally to understand how young adults (18 to 25) can best be supported to move away from crime. This report from the Revolving Doors Agency makes a valuable contribution to that evidence base of diversionary approaches for young adults. Young adulthood can be a time of high offending but it is also the period where with the right interventions rapid desistance from the cycle of crisis and crime can be achieved.”

The Magistrates Association has published a new report on how the issue of maturity is currently handled within magistrates’ courts. Based on research funded by the Barrow Cadbury Trust, the report argues that all young adult defendants’ maturity should be assessed before they come to court and magistrates should receive training on the issue of maturity.

The issue of how young adults should be treated within the criminal justice system has been the subject of extensive research in recent years and has also been considered by two recent Justice Select Committee inquiries. However, most of the research to date has been restricted to crown courts, despite the fact that the majority of criminal offences that come to court are dealt with entirely in magistrates’ courts.

With the publication of new Sentencing Council guidelines in 2019 providing more detail on the specific mitigating factor relating to age or lack of maturity, the MA thought it was important to gather the experiences of magistrates on dealing with young adults and their developing maturity.

The report brings together the key findings from MA research into magistrates’ understanding of maturity and how it is currently handled within magistrates’ courts. The research included a survey of magistrates, a series of focus groups with magistrates, and a roundtable with other court participants including representatives from Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, community rehabilitation companies, youth offending teams and defence solicitors.

Two overarching recommendations arose from this research:

1. More independent assessments on maturity need to be carried out before the first hearing.
2. Training needs to be provided to magistrates to give them a general understanding of maturity and how it affects both participation of young adults in court and sentencing decisions.

Commenting on the report, MA chief executive Jon Collins said:  There has been extensive research about developing maturity, and the apparent cliff edge for young people when they turn 18 in respect of the criminal justice system. Given that magistrates deal with the majority of criminal cases, it was important to get their views on this issue. The final report sets out some key recommendations which the MA is keen to take forward.

‘Magistrates recognise that more training on the issue of maturity would be beneficial, while assessments of young adult defendants’ maturity should be carried out routinely before they come to court. This would help magistrates to be better-informed about the people appearing before them, which would in turn support improved court practice and fairer, more effective sentencing.’

A launch event for the report will be taking place online on Tuesday 16 February at 11am.

The executive summary can be read here and the full report can be read here.

The Magistrates Association is an independent charity and the membership body for the magistracy. We work to promote the sound administration of the law, including by providing guidance, training and support for our members, informing the public about the courts and the role of magistrates, producing and publishing research on key topics relevant to the magistracy, and contributing to the development and delivery of reforms to the courts and the broader justice system. With over 14,000 members across England and Wales, we are a unique source of information and insight and the only independent voice of the magistracy.

Joyce Moseley Chair of the Transition to Adulthood (T2A) Alliance welcomes the Justice Select Committee’s report on Children and Young People in Custody (Part 2): The Youth Secure Estate and Resettlement, published today 10 Feb.

The Committee heard evidence from the Barrow Cadbury Trust and from Leaders Unlocked’s Young Justice Advisers on the difficulties of the transition from youth to adult services. That evidence to the Committee illustrates the importance of support for young people during this transition.  That support has not always been forthcoming. We know from neuroscience that young people continue maturing past their 18^th birthday, often until their mid-twenties.  Any progress made by a child in the youth justice system is interrupted by the ‘cliff edge’ of turning 18.   A large number of young people have mental health needs, neuro-cognitive disabilities and a background of care placements. These vulnerabilities can be made more acute by the transition from youth justice and child social care services into the adult system.

The recommendations made by the Committee for the Ministry of Justice to publish a ‘youth to adult policy framework’ and to implement it across the youth and adult estates is welcomed by the T2A Alliance.  Although  guidance is already in place to support the transitions process, the remit of existing guidance is only to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the transitions process.  T2A believes that more attention must be paid to the best interests of the child, including early identification of any vulnerabilities, provision of consistent support, and the option not to transfer a young person into the adult system, if there are good reasons to keep them in the youth system – such as a pending parole hearing or completion of a work or educational placement. To enable the child to be fully engaged in the process, the Ministry of Justice should listen and learn from those with lived experience of the transfer process.

Finally, the existing transition process and the revised one once implemented, T2A recommends should be regularly reviewed by the Ministry of Justice to assess how effective they are at developing pro-social identities in young people, and enabling them to contribute to society for the duration of their adult lives.

Want to learn more about how to effectively support young adults?

Guides for practitioners

A new T2A (Transition to Adulthood) briefing on young adults and remand launched today makes the case for a reform of remand arrangements for the young adults.   

A substantial and growing evidence base has found that young adults aged 18-25 are a distinct group, because they are still maturing. Interrupting a young adult’s development with a period in custody should only be made as a last resort.  

The T2A report comes hot on the heels of the Chief Inspectorate of Prison’s short thematic review ‘Outcomes for Young Adults in Custody’, which was highly critical of the Government placing young adults in adult prisons without any coherent strategy, despite a decade of research and evidence explaining the uniqueness of the needs of young adults.  

Specific data is not available about the extent to which young adults remanded to custody subsequently receive a custodial sentence but in the case of children under 18 and women of all ages, most do not.  

Although there has been a decline in the numbers of young adults remanded in custody, the report argues there is scope for reducing them yet further. 

Recent research by Ed Cape and Tom Smith found that “nearly half of those people who are kept in custody at some stage before their trial or sentence were either found not guilty, or if found guilty, were given a non-custodial sentence”.  

In the context of a growing court backlog and highly restricted regimes in prisons because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the report’s author, Rob Allen, argues “it is particularly timely to consider the case for reform of remand arrangements”. ‘Extended Custody Time Limits’ introduced in September 2020 to manage court delays, threaten to leave thousands of people on remand in custody for longer than usual.  Young adults are spending longer in custody as a result of these court backlogs which were already problematic prior to the pandemic.   

The recognition of the need for a distinct approach to young adults has already led to a number of important criminal justice reforms such as expanded explanations in Sentencing Guidelines about how age and immaturity can affect both a young adult’s responsibility for an offence and how a particular sentence may impact on them. However, there has been no corresponding reform for young adults on custodial remand who, the report says: “can be deprived of their liberty for many months, often experiencing very impoverished regimes and … placed at risk of violence and self-harm”. 

 The briefing examines to what extent the specific developmental needs of young adults are taken into account by courts when making decisions about whether to remand defendants into custody. It also looks at the existing legal provisions which could be applied at the remand stage of criminal proceedings, and whether criminal justice agencies and courts think about the maturity of young adult defendants when making decisions about remanding them. 

If young adults aren’t remanded in custody the report looks at what alternatives are available, particularly young women, and defendants with mental health problems. 

Finally it looks at what measures might be taken to improve the distinctiveness of remand arrangements for 18-25 year olds?  Read ‘Young Adults on Remand’. 

T2A (Transition to Adulthood) welcomes the publication of this  important short thematic report on Outcomes for Young Adults in Custody which makes it clear that there is a lack of a clear strategy for young adults in custody, resulting in lost opportunities and poor outcomes. Although some individuals working in the prison system are highly motivated, their efforts are hampered by the lack of a systematic approach, integrated strategy and limited resources for this age group. 

The Chief Inspector’s report endorses many of the key findings and recommendations of a decade of T2A research and other independent reviews of how this age group are dealt with in prisons. We have long-advocated for distinct prison estate accommodation for this age group — separate from the over 25s — including well-tailored, developmentally-appropriate regimes that addresses the distinct needs – and opportunities for change – presented by young adults.  Outcomes for young adults have been poor for a considerable time and will be exacerbated by the current pandemic. T2A has been particularly concerned about outcomes for people of colour, people identifying as gypsy, traveller and Roma, and care experienced young people in and following custody. A more effective approach would understand the experiences of these people as well as young adults more generally and build on the numerous examples of effective practice undertaken in other jurisdictions in the UK and internationally. 

The Government can do more to stop these young people from becoming lifelong criminals who undermine our public safety. It is imperative that this evidence and the volume of credible voices calling for change are reflected in the Sentencing Bill when it comes before Parliament, otherwise an ‘open goal’ opportunity to reduce reoffending and be smarter about how we treat this group will be missed. 

Joyce Moseley, Chair of T2A said: “It is frustrating that despite practitioner, academic, government and Inspectorate findings, we have seen so little progress for young adults at a time when the  criminal justice system so needs an evidence-based strategy to mitigate the impact of the pandemic.  If the Government fails to act on yet one more damning report it will be another indictment of its failure to respond to the needs of a lost generation of young people, locking them into a cycle of crime and undermining public safety. 

A new report by the Youth Justice Legal Centre (YJLC), part of Just for Kids Law, reveals that severe delays in the criminal justice system are leaving children, families and victims in limbo, resulting in serious consequences for those who turn 18.

System delay is the main explanation for why children turn 18 years old between the commission of an offence and prosecution.  COVID-19 has exacerbated delays throughout the criminal justice system which is having a significant impact on children approaching their 18th birthday.

The most recent official data shows that 1,400 offences a year are committed by children who turn 18 prior to conviction but it is believed this is a significant underestimate and the number is expected to rise. Turning 18 prior to prosecution means the young people have their cases heard in adult courts and lose the opportunity to benefit from the youth justice system. This often happens because it can take months or sometimes years for the police or the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to make a charging decision. There are currently no fast-track options for children, including those approaching their 18th birthday.

The outcomes for children who turn 18  are vastly different to those of their peers who are prosecuted as children. The damaging consequences include losing access to youth diversion schemes, losing anonymity during court proceedings, only being eligible for adult sentences including much longer rehabilitation periods which reduce employment prospects and prevent people from moving on with their lives.

Just for Kids Law is calling for timely justice for those who commit offences as children. The report, Timely Justice: Turning 18, recommends that where this is not possible the same sentencing framework should be applied to all those who offend in childhood. It also recommends  a time limit of three months during which a child can be subject to release under investigation. And the report identifies an urgent need to collect and regularly publish accurate data on children who are released under investigation and those who commit offences but turn 18 prior to conviction.

The Youth Justice Legal Centre has also developed a legal guide to help lawyers navigate the different rules, regimes and principles which apply to those turning 18 in the criminal justice system.

Enver Solomon, Chief Executive at Just for Kids Law,  said:
‘It is a travesty of justice  that due to unnecessary delays in the criminal justice system young people who have offended in childhood are not able to benefit from legal protections which exist for those who break the law as children. As a result of the pandemic and court closures the situation is much worse with yet more delays and even more children being convicted as adults. Timely justice is crucial for children, families and victims. Young adults who committed offences as children must be given the opportunity to build meaningful futures and be treated fairly.’

New data obtained by Revolving Doors Agency under the Freedom of Information legislation reveals that:

• Over half of all reoffences committed by young adults are theft and summary non-motoring offences.
• Young adults whose index offences are theft and summary non-motoring offences also have the highest rates of reoffending in the same category as their index offence.
• Theft creates the highest level of churn of repeat offences in the same category, with a ratio of 994 reoffences per 1,000 reoffenders.
• This rate is strikingly above any other crime category. It is 12 times higher than repeated possession of a weapon (for example carrying knives) and 6 times higher than repeated violence against a person.

These new figures expose the difference in demand created by young adults committing more serious and sometimes violent crime and the group often called ‘the revolving door’ who commit persistent low-level offences driven by a combination of needs stemming from complex trauma and poverty. These repeated, non-violent offences drive demand for our police, courts and justice system but are driven by underlying, unaddressed need.

The volume and churn of young adults who are sucked into the criminal justice system for relatively minor offences highlights the need for a radical new approach. The current failing approach resulted in the proportion of people with a history of repeat offending reaching at its highest ever level, accounting for nearly two fifths of all offenders.

This stark evidence comes at the same time as Revolving Doors publish an evidence briefing “New Generation” highlighting the critical role of Police and Crime Commissioners and police services in preventing the new generation of young adults entering the revolving door. The report brings together new perspectives on characteristics and needs of young adults entering the revolving door.

Revolving Doors Agency has also announced that they are offering bespoke consultancy and intensive on the ground support for five areas to kick-start local initiatives. These sites will benefit from their research, lived experience, policy, and service design expertise. Their support, which will be free of charge, can help Police and Crime Commissioners and their offices implement new strategies to support better options for young adults, such as deferred prosecutions or diversion schemes to keep young adults out of the criminal justice system.

Nacro has published Using an identity lens: Constructive working with children in the criminal justice system.

Research has shown that identity, and how you feel about yourself, can be key to moving forward with life and away from crime. Working with the University of Salford, Youth Offending Teams and supported by the Barrow Cadbury Trust, this toolkit has been developed to promote a constructive, identity-focused approach to ultimately help divert children away from progressing further through the criminal justice system. Using the principles of the Nacro-led Beyond Youth Custody programme, this toolkit outlines how these can be applied to working with children before custody to support them towards positive outcomes and prevent further offending.  It includes sections on:

Understanding the importance of identity

Helping children develop their pro-social identity

Tools to help you work constructively

Whilst this toolkit has been aimed primarily at practitioners working with children in Youth Offending Teams, it could be applied when working with young adults and young people in different settings. The aim is to provide an approach which can be embedded over time and shape current practices, encouraging practitioners to think about how they can use an identity lens to better promote positive outcomes which, in turn, prevents offending.

For more information about this toolkit contact: [email protected].