What have police and crime commissioners done for young people?

First elected in 2012, police and crime commissioners were created by the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government to hold local forces to account.

Their powers are wide-ranging, from setting local policing priorities through police and crime plans and commissioning services, to the hiring and firing of chief constables.

But how successful are they in promoting the views of young people and ensuring local forces are keeping them safe?

Children's campaigners are concerned specific groups of vulnerable children such as those with experience of care are not being prioritised or listened to.

However, representative body the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) maintains the role is effectively supporting young people.

For example, the APCC's action plan for 2022/23 to end violence against women and girls, is already seeing PCCs commission victim support services and investing in rehabilitation programmes.

PCCs who say they have a strong track record in supporting young people include APCC crime prevention lead and Bedfordshire PCC Festus Akinbusoye (pictured).

He was elected as a Conservative PCC for the county in 2021 but says his priorities in the role, including tackling youth crime, are driven by his background growing up in a disadvantaged area, rather than party politics.

“We all bring different skills to the table,” he says. “Overall, I think PCCs have a significant amount of influence on local policymaking, especially around how vulnerable young people are engaged with by law enforcement.”

This includes scrutinising local policing, which “is the bread and butter of what PCCs do”, says Akinbusoye.

In Bedfordshire Akinbusoye meets monthly with the chief constable and senior officers to look at custody report figures.

“They need to show me the trend over the last quarter – and past year – of the number of young people that come into custody, their ages, their gender, the reason why they have been arrested and their ethnicity so we can keep an eye on disproportionality,” he explains.

Another example he gives is a six-month pilot programme he commissioned where youth workers are supporting persistently absent pupils. This followed data showing absence from school was a factor in the lives of around six in 10 young people involved in homicides and cases involving weapons.

Akinbusoye says it is important youth workers rather than police officers take the lead on this work.

“When we start having the police involved at a young age it potentially inflames the situation in some cases but also it can create a pushback from young people, so they become more agitated,” he says, adding that officers “are not youth workers and I don't want them to be. That is not their job”.

This is a strategy influenced by his upbringing on a council estate in east London.

“Everybody hated the police,” he says. “If you see the police you don't want to talk to them but if you see a youth worker it's different,” he says.

This pilot is being evaluated by the University of Bedfordshire and is already showing positive results, says Akinbusoye. One of the pupils involved is now doing a landscaping apprenticeship, while another who was going missing two to three times a month “hasn't gone missing at all since engaging with a youth intervention specialist”.

Other commissioners approached by CYP Now are equally positive about the influence they have on improving the lives of local young people.

Cheshire's Conservative PCC John Dwyer cites a children's social worker training scheme he is involved in running with local directors of children's services and backed with Home Office funding, to better understand “coercive control” of young people and tackle domestic abuse.

“The model enables practitioners to work with not only the victims, but the perpetrator too, to reduce risk and harm to children,” says Dwyer.

He has also secured £1.5m in funding to train teachers in running programmes around preventing sexual abuse and commissioned emotional and practical support for young victims of hate crime.

Elsewhere, Hampshire's Conservative PCC Donna Jones cites the national lobbying role of commissioners to advise policymakers on legislation that impacts young people, most recently on the Online Safety Bill.

In addition, she is using government funding, through the Safer Communities Fund and Safer Streets Fund, to invest in crime diversion schemes and programmes that teach young people about healthy relationships and exploitation.

This has seen £22,000 handed to local charity Pompey in the Community to run workshops for 11- to 18-year-olds to prevent offending, exploitation and promote positive relationships. Hampshire Cricket Board has received £18,500 to run weekly cricket sessions in disadvantaged areas.

But despite these local examples, the National Youth Advocacy Service (NYAS) is concerned action to support vulnerable young people at risk of crime is not nationwide and failing to offer specific support to those with experience of care.

Last year, the NYAS published an analysis of 43 PCCs and found just eight local police and crime plans explicitly mention children in care and care leavers. Only 12 had included one or more of the charity's recommendations to improve support, including protecting victims of exploitation and involving young people in decisions.

“We think every plan should have consideration of how they can engage care-experienced young people and reduce criminalisation,” says NYAS director of policy and communications Ben Twomey.

“I’d like to see more PCCs understand what the rights of children are and then help to explain those rights to children.”

Akinbusoye says that because care experienced young people are not specifically mentioned in plans, it may not necessarily mean they are not being prioritised.

He deliberately avoids mentioning “each subgroup” and instead refers to “vulnerable young people as a general term” including those with experience of care.

“If I was to identify each subgroup of vulnerable young people there will always be someone saying what about me, what about children from single parent homes, what about black children who don't have a father. How far do you want to break it down?” he says.

Another campaigner who wants to see PCCs nationwide improve support for vulnerable young people at risk of crime is Barnardo's chief executive Lynn Perry.

She wants PCCs to “put children at the heart of services that support victims of child sexual abuse”.

“Doing so would bring together local organisations who are supporting a child including health and social care teams, the police and charities into a single, child-friendly environment,” she adds.

Many PCCs are already involving young people in their decision making and shaping local policy through setting up youth commissioner roles to scrutinise their work. These are sometimes referred to as youth forums or advisers but not every area has this role.

Akinbusoye says that while there is no formal youth commissioner in Bedfordshire he ensures he talks to local young people through existing local youth forums and visiting schools.

“I engage directly with young people, listen to them and take questions from them,” he says. By March this year, he will have visited 100 schools since first being elected two years ago.

He also organises annual conferences for pupils on local youth and policing issues featuring “powerful, inspirational speakers”. “Every young person who comes says it is life changing,” he maintains.

Twomey says the best youth commissioners and forums “will not just consult but be about co-producing policies or solutions to the issues young people face”.

Cheshire is among areas with a formal youth commission that focuses on involving children in shaping support. The body recruits from key target groups, including looked-after children, former young offenders and victims of crime. It holds regular meetings where young people speak directly to Dwyer (pictured, right) and senior officers.

One of those involved Sumaya, aged 16, said the youth commission is “very effective at holding police to account” and feels their views are “taken very seriously by them”.

Another involved in Cheshire's commission, 19-year-old Chelsea, has been involved in creating an online guide on young people's rights.

“We were able to decide everything from the colour palette to the content of the website and what areas they need to inform young people on,” she says.

Hampshire's Donna Jones also has a youth commission in place to advise her. Young people involved feel they do have power and influence.

“If at any point we feel that we are perhaps being side-lined, I and other members would be able and willing to hold the PCC to account,” says Arthur, who is a member of the group.

Another, Amber, adds that the commission has representatives on the local Child Exploitation Board and Violence Reduction Units.

“We are invited to speak freely with our opinions and give open and honest feedback on plans and strategies being set out,” she says.

As elected officials, PCCs must also answer to local people every four years. Evidence shows interest in voting for them is increasing, from an initial turnout at PCC elections of 15.1 per cent in 2012 to 33.2 per cent in 2021, which is similar to local council elections.

“We live in a democracy in a free country, it is the right way to be,” says Akinbusoye. “I know I am accountable and that the views of the public are represented in the criminal justice system.”

Despite initial concerns around their creation the Labour Party has been in favour of PCCs since 2015, a spokesperson confirmed, suggesting the role would be retained should there be a change of government.

NYAS's Twomey believes electing PCCs is “good for democracy”. But this is still no guarantee that young people will be high on their agenda as “children don't vote”.

“Supporting the needs of care-experienced young people is not a consideration on the doorstep during election time,” he concludes.

PCC VIEW
‘YOUNG PEOPLE'S VIEWS ARE CRUCIAL’

By Dafydd Llywelyn, PCC, Dyfed-Powys

I was elected PCC for Dyfed-Powys in May 2016. Before that I worked in police intelligence for many years, moving on to lecture in criminology at Aberystywth University in 2014. My career has given me considerable insight into core policing issues and an understanding of what the public want.

Working with and for children, young people and families is a critically important part of my role and I support youth services and various agencies to deliver key services.

For example, in the four years up to March 2022, I invested £180,000 per year into youth offending partnerships (YOPs) across Dyfed-Powys. This enabled delivery of an early intervention and prevention service for eight- to 17-year-olds at risk of offending. An independent evaluation by Aberystwyth University found investing in YOPs had positive results including helping protect vulnerable young people and reducing crime and costs.

I’m particularly proud of work achieved through the Premier League Kicks Programme, which I’m funding in five areas. It uses sport to inspire children and young people and bring communities together. Police community support officers from neighbourhood police teams attend sessions to help build positive relationships between the police and young people.

A big area of concern is children who go missing from home or care. PCC funding supports an independent de-briefing, support, and mediation service for children and young people reported missing and their families, provided by charity Llamau. Incidents where under-18s have gone missing reduced by 41 per cent – 762 fewer episodes – since the service was introduced.

As a father of five it's important to me that all young people have opportunities to shape public services. A youth forum of young people aged 14 to 25 gives me support and advice and ensures I’m held accountable and working in the most effective way. In 2021, they created a short video sharing young people's experiences of police contact, which is now part of the training for police officers and staff.

In summer 2022, my office surveyed young people to get their views of local policing. This identified three priorities for the forum in 2022/23: mental health support for young victims, substance misuse prevention activities, and support for young adults committing low-level offences including help to access training and employment.

With these priorities in mind, youth forum members are holding focus groups with peers and have launched another survey – called Y Sgwrs or the Conversation – for young people and professionals. Results will be shared with the chief constable and decision-makers from councils and youth organisations at our youth conference later this year.

When it comes to improving services, we need to recognise the vulnerability of children in the criminal justice system, both as victims and perpetrators. We need to promote a trauma-informed, child-centred policing model and invest in services that support young victims of crime and prevent or reduce their risk of exploitation. I support national measures to reduce disproportionate criminalisation of care-experienced young people, including the launch of an all-Wales protocol.

FACTFILE
WHO ARE POLICE AND CRIME COMMISSIONERS?

• Police and crime commissioners (PCCs) are elected to oversee local policing.

• Their responsibilities and powers include appointing, as well as potentially dismissing, chief constables, stating local police and crime objectives through the area's police and crime plan as well as setting the force's budget. They are also responsible for developing local community safety and justice partnerships.

• The title of the role varies locally. The majority – 35 – are designated PCCs across England and Wales. Meanwhile four areas, North Yorkshire, Staffordshire, Northamptonshire and Essex, have police, fire and crime commissioners.

• In London, West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester the role's responsibilities are covered by the areas’ deputy mayors. In Northern Ireland the role is taken on by the region's policing board and in the City of London responsibility for the area's police and crime plan rests with the City of London Police Authority Board chair.

• The post is elected locally every four years with the major political parties putting forward candidates. Following PCC elections in 2021, 26 are Conservative, eight are Labour, while Dyfed-Powys is represented by Plaid Cymru. All police, fire and crime commissioners are Conservative and all deputy mayors with PCC responsibilities are Labour.

IN NUMBERS
HOW CRIME AFFECTS YOUNG PEOPLE

• 1 in 10 children aged 10 to 15 have been the victim of crime, suggests the latest available figures from the Crime Survey of England and Wales

• 841,000 crimes were estimated to have been committed against 10- to 15-year-olds in the year ending March 2019

• 54% of crimes were violent crimes with the majority being low-level violence, 27% were thefts of personal property, 15% were criminal damage to personal property and 4% were robbery

• 17,486 crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children were logged in England and Wales in 2021/22 – an average of 48 offences per day

• 6,156 offences relating to sexual communication with a child were recorded by UK police forces in 2021/22 – an increase of 2.5% on the previous year and up 84% since 2017/18

• 245,000 referrals relating to domestic abuse were made to children's social services by police forces in England and Wales in 2020/21 – an average of 669 child protection referrals per day

• 59 children under the age of 16 were a victim of homicide in the year ending March 2021. The most common suspect was a parent or step-parent

• 50 teenagers aged 13 to 19 were a victim of homicide in the year ending March 2021. In 70% of cases the young person was killed using a knife or sharp instrument

• 15,800 children and young people in England and Wales were cautioned or sentenced for various offences in 2020/21

• 3,500 proven knife and offensive weapon offences were committed by children

• 560 children on average were in custody at any one time during the year – down 28% on the previous year

Source: Office for National Statistics; NSPCC, Youth Justice Board and Ministry of Justice