At a meeting of Parliament's Justice Select Committee last week, Frances Done was asked by Labour MP Virendra Sharma how the YJB could tackle the barriers to reducing the number of young people being locked up.
Done told the committee that as it was the court's job to decide on sentencing, it was up to the YJB and youth offending teams (YOTs) to convince magistrates that community sentences could be an appropriate penalty.
"We have to help YOTs build as much confidence with local magistrates' benches as possible," she said. "The better the relationship between the YOT and the courts, the more confident magistrates are in the reports that the YOTs do, and the better the general understanding of the work of the YOT and the way the referral panels work, the more likely it is there will be lower custody rates," she said.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here
