Minister for Justice (): Today I have published a
policy statement setting out the first stages of this
Government's plans to modernise and reform the youth justice
system so that it is fit for the future.
The youth justice system in England and Wales has seen
considerable success in recent decades, with significant
reductions in first-time entrants, proven offences, and the
number of children in custody. This reflects the dedication of
our frontline professionals and volunteers who make up that
system.
However, the children who come into contact with the system today
often present with increasingly complex needs and face
significant barriers to rehabilitation. To continue protecting
the public and prevent further victims, the system must evolve.
Our statement sets out the Government's first phase of reforms to
modernise how youth justice services are funded, governed and
supported. It focuses on strengthening early intervention,
reducing unnecessary use of custody, ensuring accountable and
supportive governance, and providing frontline services with
greater confidence in their funding, in return for stronger
outcomes.
This publication lays the groundwork for further reforms which we
will set out the Government's vision for a reformed youth justice
system.
We are proud to be introducing more dependable funding
arrangements for youth justice services. From this financial
year, multi-year funding settlements will give frontline services
the certainty they need to plan ahead and manage their resources
more effectively. We will provide £281m over three years for the
youth justice core grant, alongside extended, multi-year
investment for the successful Turnaround programme – a further
£46m over three years – enabling youth justice services to
continue their vital work diverting vulnerable children away from
crime.
In light of the evolving youth justice landscape, the statement
also outlines reforms to oversight structures. These include
refocusing the Youth Justice Board towards supporting the
frontline in a continuous improvement role, while transferring
responsibility for the development, funding, and monitoring of
youth justice policy to direct ministerial oversight in the
Ministry of Justice.
This Government is committed to a youth justice system that
embraces the latest technology and data. As part of wider plan
for this, we will establish an expert advisory council to support
the responsible use of analytics and artificial intelligence to
strengthen early intervention and improve outcomes.
Ensuring custody is used only as a last resort for children
remains a central priority of this Government. Too many children
are detained in custody on remand but then receive a community
sentence – an experience which can be damaging to the child's
life outcomes and at high financial cost to local authorities. To
reduce unnecessary custodial remands, we will change the way
annual youth remand funding is distributed, supporting local
authorities to take a regional approach to develop stronger
community remand and bail support options. We will invest a
further £5m through regional remand partnerships to create
community remand placements, with particular focus on specialist
fostering.
In addition, I have established a new departmental board to drive
improvements to standards in youth custody. This statement
outlines some of the initial steps we are taking to improve
safety, education, time out of room and staffing in the youth
estate.
This statement lays the foundations for further reforms that will
be announced in the Spring. These proposals, taken together, will
offer the most significant reforms to the youth justice system in
a generation, supporting this Government's clear missions to make
our streets safer and to break down barriers to opportunity for
the most vulnerable children.
The full policy statement will be laid before the House and it
will also be made available on GOV.UK
