Ministers bring together local leaders to rewire youth crime prevention

• Youth Justice Minister Jake Richards convened local leaders and experts in Manchester to tackle youth crime
• Roundtable explored how greater local leadership could help services work together, intervene earlier and prevent offending
• Kate Green appointed Expert Adviser on Youth Justice Devolution to help shape government reforms in England

Local leaders and experts from across youth justice, policing, children's services and education were brought together by the Government in Manchester today (Thursday 17 September) to help shape plans to prevent more young people being drawn into crime. 

Youth Justice Minister Jake Richards convened the roundtable alongside Children and Families Minister Josh MacAlister and Policing and Crime Minister Sarah Jones, exploring how services can work better together to identify children at risk earlier - and where giving local and regional leaders greater freedom could help prevent offending and protect victims.

As part of the Government's drive to take this work forward, Kate Green has been appointed Expert Adviser on Youth Justice Devolution in England, providing independent advice to Ministers on how greater local leadership could improve youth justice and crime prevention. 

Her appointment forms part of the Government's wider ambition to rewire the state, shifting power and accountability from Whitehall to local leaders and giving communities greater freedom to shape services around their needs. 

Jake Richards, Youth Justice Minister, said: 

Too often, vulnerable children encounter a system where different services are working hard but not always working together. If we are serious about cutting crime, we need to identify those at risk earlier and intervene before they become trapped in a cycle of offending. 

Today I brought together local leaders and experts who know their communities best to hear what works and what gets in their way. By breaking down barriers and giving local leaders greater freedom to join up services, we can prevent more young people being drawn into crime and ultimately protect more victims. 

The Ministers also visited SHiFT in Manchester earlier in the day, where they met practitioners working intensively with children and young people at the highest risk of entering custody or becoming entrenched in crime. 

Ministers saw first-hand how multi-disciplinary, joined-up support can help steer vulnerable young people away from offending. 

Children and Families Minister Josh MacAlister said:

"Every young person deserves to grow up supported by the adults around them, like teachers and social workers who can help stop them from being drawn into crime.

We need better and earlier intervention for vulnerable children - from the children's social care system to youth justice. That's what today's discussion in Manchester was about: giving local leaders the freedom to build that support around children before it's too late."

Policing Minister Sarah Jones said:

Every young person deserves the chance to thrive, no matter where they grow up. I have seen first-hand the difference youth services can make to young people. They provide opportunities at times when other doors have shut or a trusted voice when in day-to-day life they may not exist. They can genuinely turn lives round steering people away from crime and giving them hope for the future. 

Kate Green, Expert Adviser on Youth Justice Devolution for England, said: 

"Young people deserve the opportunity to fulfil their potential and that means intervening early, addressing the factors that place them at risk and ensuring services work together effectively around their needs.

I am pleased to be taking on the role of Expert Adviser for England and look forward to supporting ministers and officials as they consider the future of youth justice reform. Today's roundtable demonstrated the appetite for new approaches, and I am keen to help share evidence, learning and practical experience that can improve outcomes for young people across the country."

ENDS 

Notes to Editors 

• SHiFT Manchester is a partnership between national charity SHiFT, Manchester City Council and the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit. It uses an intensive, relationship-based approach to work with children and young people at the highest risk of entering custody or becoming entrenched in crime. 
• The Government's rewiring the state programme aims to shift power, funding and accountability from Whitehall to local leaders, including by expanding the role of strategic authorities. 
• Kate Green has been appointed Expert Adviser on Youth Justice Devolution for an initial 18-month period. She will advise Ministers on how strategic authorities could play a greater role in youth justice and crime prevention, including joining up services, pooling resources, reducing duplication and strengthening accountability. 
• The Adviser will work with officials across the Ministry of Justice, Home Office and Department for Education. The role is unremunerated. 
• This week saw the announcement of the locations of 42 more Young Futures Hubs, providing mentoring, wellbeing support, trusted adults and positive opportunities for young people in communities affected by violence: Thousands more young people to access help with life's biggest challenges - GOV.UK
• The Halving Knife Crime Plan brings together action across Government and society to stop people turning to knife crime and to ensure that perpetrators are caught and brought to justice, including a range of measures that will tackle the root causes of knife crime to ensure young people who are vulnerable to being drawn into crime areidentifiedand offered support in a more systematic way. Key measures include:
• • Supporting early intervention and prevention by continuing the work of Violence Reduction Units and Young Futures Panel Pilots, backed by over £66 million for the Serious Violence Reduction Programme and the Serious Violence Duty this financial year.
• Multi-agency Young Futures Panels proactively identify children and referring young people at risk of being drawn into crime connecting them with support earlier. By the end of October 2025, 53 pilot Panels were operational across England and Wales. Pilot Panel delivery has continued in 2026/27, with a further 12 Panels now operational.