In August, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) unveiled further details of its pilot programme that will see young people live in supported accommodation instead of a custody setting.
The scheme, announced in July 2021, will be trialled in two locations in London and involve a range of partners. If successful, it could be extended to other parts of England. How does the scheme work?
The London Accommodation Pathfinder (LAP) aims to accommodate 16- and 17-year-old boys for up to six months as an alternative to custody, whether that is due to being held on remand or as part of their resettlement from a young offender institution.
The LAP sites will be established in east and north London, each accommodating up to five young people. The new settings will be psychologically informed environments and will provide young people with specialist education and therapeutic support.
Matthew Knights, strategic development manager at the pathfinder, says the approach will “create an environment where trauma and the psychological needs of the children are understood and supported, and will ensure that the staff are skilled at developing reflection and relationships with the children”. Who is involved in delivering it?
The programme has been developed by the YJB, the Ministry of Justice and a number of London councils.
It was announced last month that charity St Christopher’s Fellowship will operate both settings – the east London site is due to open at the end of this year and the north London one in 2023.
In addition, Wipers Youth CIC has been awarded the contract to deliver a self-development programme for young people to increase children’s perceptions of identity and self-awareness, confidence and self-esteem. What will young people do there?
St Christopher’s says it will work closely with youth justice services, and community and mental wellbeing services to offer intensive holistic support for young people.
There will be a daily programme of therapeutic activities such as art therapy, life skills training and access to leisure facilities. Most young people will be expected to attend a college or training placement and they will be supported to undertake any reparation activities they have received. There will be an evening curfew and some may be subject to electronic monitoring. Who will staff the settings?
Both sites – which are not currently Ofsted registered – will be staffed around the clock. A learning support mentor will be attached to each setting to coordinate the educational work with young people and monitor their progress.
It is hoped the young people will develop their independent living skills so that they return to the community with greater awareness of personal safety and the risks associated with offending.
St Christopher’s has an in-house therapeutic team and there will also be visits from specialist mental health and wellbeing services, and youth justice teams. What outcomes can it achieve?
The aim is to improve outcomes for young people leaving custody and to prevent children entering it by offering an alternative community-based model.
“We hope that the whole system contributes to the intended outcomes for the children accessing the LAP,” says Knights. “In turn, this means there is a big focus on the local authorities using their specific resources available to support the child’s journey through the LAP, adding additional support to the provider.”
Phil Townsend, director of operations UK at St Christopher’s, says it is hoped that after their stay, young people will be reunited with family or move to another suitable placement. “It offers a young person a more conducive environment than a prison to turn a corner in their life,” he adds. Why is the scheme needed?
Ministry of Justice figures show that on average 40 per cent of children in custody are held on remand, but only a quarter of this group will end up with a custodial sentence. The number of young people on remand in London is particularly high (see below).
In addition, a significant percentage of children remanded in custody in London are black boys. Black boys make up one fifth of the 10- to 17-year-old population of London but comprises 37 per cent of all children who receive cautions or convictions.
The YJB says that it hopes the pathfinder will reduce the over-representation of black boys on remand. Why are there only two sites?
The YJB had intended to open four sites in three years through the pathfinder but plans were scaled back after it proved difficult to identify suitable buildings within the timescale. The longer-term ambition remains to have four sites in London.
The YJB hopes that this pathfinder will act as a proof of concept and encourage other local authorities to work together to better support children who might otherwise end up in custody.
London’s remand problem
Young Londoners are more likely to be in custody than in any other English region, with 21 per cent of custodial sentences in England made in London.
Speaking to CYP Now about the pathfinder plans earlier this year, Claudia Sturt, YJB chief executive, said: “We know that, especially in London, remand disproportionately affects black boys and children looked after and we believe this is one of the important ways we can tackle the over-representation of these children in custody.”
Reducing the custodial remand population is expected to become even more important when court backlogs are considered.
