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Introduction
A youth justice service is a local, multi-agency statutory team working with children aged 10–17 who have offended or are at risk of offending. Their role is to prevent offending and reoffending, protect the public, and support the welfare and vulnerability of the children they work with. The team also has statutory obligations to support victims of youth crime, primarily by providing information, assessing needs, and offering restorative justice opportunities.
The team brings together practitioners from children’s social care, the police, probation, health, education and other specialist services, enabling a holistic response to children’s needs, risks and strengths. It delivers out-of-court disposals and court orders, supports children in custody and on release, and works closely with victims through restorative approaches.
Effective information sharing is essential for youth justice service involvement in multi-agency safeguarding to be effective, as it helps to identify concerns of sexual abuse, coordinate interventions across agencies, and ensure that children receive timely, joined-up support that addresses both their welfare and their offending-related needs. It also ensures an accurate understanding of the possible risks posed by children who have displayed harmful sexual behaviour, and the approaches to intervention that can reduce that risk.
AssetPlus assessments
Comprehensive youth justice assessments, recorded on the AssetPlus framework, are used to identify:
- the risk that a child or young person poses to others (including risk of sexually harmful behaviour)
- the risks that they face from others (including grooming, sexual exploitation, or sexual abuse)
- risk factors such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), trauma, or unmet needs
- the child or young person’s strengths, protective factors, and required interventions.
Find out more about sharing information from AssetPlus
AIM assessments
Separately from the AssetPlus assessment, a child who has displayed harmful sexual behaviour may be assessed under a model developed by the Assessment, Intervention, Monitoring (AIM) Project. This assessment will look at the child’s current risks and vulnerabilities, including risk of harm to themselves or others, with the intention of:
- identifying safeguarding needs and risk factors that require intervention
- informing referral pathways, intervention plans and ongoing monitoring
- documenting relevant information in a structured format
- supporting the monitoring of progress and outcomes, in order to guide ongoing risk management and safeguarding decisions.
Find out more about sharing information from an AIM assessment
Prevention and Diversion Assessment Tool (PDAT)
If a child is engaged with the Youth Justice Service and is subject to diversion and out-of-court interventions, they should have a PDAT assessment. The assessment includes a number of sub-sections related to the child’s current circumstances and behaviours, as well as sections focused on their views and their exit plan out of the Youth Justice Service.
Offence and conviction history
Records of previous convictions, cautions or intelligence related to sexual offences, including details of outcomes and conditions.
Reports to court or panels
If a child has been found guilty of an offence in court, a pre-sentence report (PSRs) is prepared which outlines the child’s background, their needs, any risks they pose or risks to them, and the impact of their offence, in order to guide the sentencing judge or magistrate to impose a fair and rehabilitative sentence. It is written with the seriousness of the offence in mind, as well as the child’s suitability for particular types of sentence (e.g. types of community sentence).
The report is developed based on an interview with the child, and draws on other information held by the youth justice service (such as supervision notes and information recorded on AssetPlus). It will contain detail including:
- the child’s index offence(s) and criminal history
- an assessment of their risk of harm to others
- commentary on their past sexual or violent offences
- information about their family and relationship context.
This background information on their behaviour and attitudes can support an understanding of the risk they pose.
This background information on the child’s behaviour and attitudes can support an understanding of the risk they pose and the risks to them.
Note: Pre-sentence reports written in relation to a person over the age of 18 are owned by the Probation Service.
Family and home environment assessment
Observations of parental supervision and protective capacity; any family history of abuse or neglect, contact with anyone who has a history of sexual offending, and information about the child’s relationships with siblings and other household members.