Standing Committee for Youth Justice relaunches as Alliance for Youth Justice

The coalition of more than 70 non-profit organisations works to advocate for positive change in the youth justice system in England and Wales.

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The SCJY was formed in the 1990s, made up of a number of charities and organisations concerned with children, young people, and the criminal justice system. 

“We established a strong reputation as a respected source of informed and principled expertise in youth justice matters, and were routinely consulted by parliament, government and others on policy and practice,” AYJ director Pippa Goodfellow said.

The relaunch comes following the recruitment of Goodfellow as the group’s first director in 2019, which sparked a review of the future direction of the organisation.

“We knew that in order to keep up the momentum in our work we needed to reflect on how we had changed as an organisation and our goals for the future. 

“We were no longer a ‘standing committee’ as our previous name suggested, so it was the right time to think about how we present a true reflection of the dynamic and inclusive network of organisations we had become,” Goodfellow added.

In July 2020, members voted unanimously to change the organisation’s name to the Alliance for Youth Justice.

The AYJ aims to “promote widespread understanding about the underlying causes of children coming to the attention of the criminal justice system, and champion approaches that enable them to reach their full potential.”

Goodfellow said: “We are delighted to make this change to enable our work in youth justice to be more impactful and engaging, for the benefit of our members, the wider youth justice sector, and most importantly the children we work for and with. We are excited to relaunch under our new name and share our new logo and website.

“We make this transition during a fundamentally pivotal time for our youth justice system. The complex and deep-rooted issues within our society that drive children into the criminal justice system have been exacerbated by the pandemic, in the context of deepening disadvantage and inequality. In developing future solutions, the AYJ aims to promote the rights and voices of children, and to amplify the views and experiences of our members.”

Hannah Smithson, chair of the AYJ, added: “Becoming the AYJ signals more than just a change of name. Over the past 18 months we have grown and developed our board, and expanded our staff team - who we would like to thank for their incredible hard work.

“While we are all very excited about the relaunch, we recognise that as an organisation, the AYJ has a key role to play in advocating for and with justice-involved children. This has never been more apparent than over the past 10 months when recognising the impacts and implications of Covid-19 on the youth justice system.”

Find out more about the launch and the AYJ here.