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Contact: P. Sutton, Head of Youth Offending Services, Tel No 01962 876100

[email protected]

1. Introduction

1.1 The Committee has had a long-standing interest in the educational arrangements for young offenders whilst they are held in the secure estate, and after their release. Members will have the opportunity to hear from Dr. Martin Stephenson, who has undertaken extensive research on this subject. Dr Stephenson is a lecturer in at Nottingham Trent University, and one of the founder members of the Youth Justice Board. He led the research team which produced three reports into the education of young offenders.

2. Definitions and Background Statistics

2.1 The following glossary and statistics may be of assistance to Members.

2.2 "The Secure Estate" is the name given to the range of secure institutions in which young people serve a sentence of custody or, in some cases, a period on remand prior to sentence. The secure estate consists of prison service establishments, which provide separate facilities for under 18's, local authority secure units, and secure training centres. In general, boys and girls aged 12-14 years serve their sentences in local authority secure units and secure training centres. Boys aged 15 and above, unless they are assessed as particularly vulnerable, serve their sentences in prison service establishments. Older girls generally serve sentences in adult prisons, but the Youth Justice Board recently committed itself to providing more suitable places for all young women prisoners by the end of 2003. The Youth Justice Board is responsible for purchasing the facilities, for monitoring standards, and for arranging the placement when the court passes sentence.

2.3 "Detention and Training Orders" are the single sentencing provision available to Magistrates and Judges for young offenders, except for the most serious crimes. D.T.O.'s are served half in the secure estate, and half in the community. There is provision for early release from the "custodial half", with the additional surveillance provided by electronic monitoring (or "tagging"). Youth Offending Teams are responsible for supervising young people during the "community half" of the sentence. The minimum length of the total sentence is four months and the maximum is two years. There are, however, proposals to increase the minimum length of sentence and to replace short sentences with more Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programmes, (ISSP) in an effort to reduce the level of reconviction. The most serious crimes are dealt with under different powers which allow for the length of sentence to be as long as an adult would receive. These sentences are sometimes referred to as "Detention at Her Majesty's Pleasure", or, with reference to the legislation, as "Section 90/91 Orders".

2.4 "Training Plans" are written documents which are produced jointly by staff from the Youth Offending Team and the secure institution. They should be prepared within ten days of the sentence following a meeting to which the young offenders and his / her parent(s) would be invited. The plan would set out, among other things, the educational arrangements which will be made for both the "custodial half" and the "community half" of the sentence. The plan is reviewed regularly during both halves of the sentence.

2.5 The attached report, (Appendix A), prepared for the Chief Officers Group earlier this year, sets out the patterns of custodial sentencing, the age range of the young offenders, and the places where their sentences were served. Members will note that a number of young people whom the Youth Offending Team assesses as being vulnerable, continue to be sent to prison service establishments. The report also summarises the recent ruling in relation to child protection procedures at prison service establishments.

3. The ECOTEC Report

3.1 The Youth Justice Board commissioned ECOTEC Consultancy to undertake an audit of education and training provision for young people in custody on Detention and Training Orders. The report, which is in three parts, was published in November 2001. In his introduction to the reports, the Chairman of the Youth Justice Board, Lord Warner, writes "the extent of the problems revealed by these reports has served as a wake-up call for all of us involved in Youth Justice".

3.2 Members will have the benefit of a presentation from Dr. Stephenson. By way of further prior reading, some of the comments obtained from the young offenders themselves are attached to this report, (Appendix B). The young people's expectations for education are consistent and reasonable.

_ Individual attention and support with literacy and numeracy in order to help them stay in mainstream education.

_ A sufficient range of teaching within the secure estate so that young people of differing abilities receive teaching at an appropriate level.

_ Clarity from Youth Offending Team workers and education staff in the community about the education they will receive on release.

4. Conclusion and Recommendation

4.1 Access to appropriate full-time education, training or employment is a key factor in the prevention of re-offending. Having heard the presentation from Dr. Stephenson, Members may wish to commission further work from the four local Education Authorities, aimed at reviewing the arrangements that are made locally for young offenders serving custodial sentences.

4.2 It is recommended, therefore, that the Committee:

i. Note the report and presentations from Dr. Martin Stephenson.

ii. Seek further reports on the extent to which educational provision for young offenders leaving custody is made available in each of the four local authority areas.

P. Sutton

13.3.03

cyjc ed yp sec estate

Section 100D - Local Government Act 1972 - Background Documents:

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

N.B. The list schedules:

i. Published works.

ii. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

"An Audit of Education and Training Provision within the

Youth Justice System"

Youth Justice Board for England and Wales, November 2001