Agenda item

The Strategic Director of Social Care and Education submits a report on the proposed Youth Justice Plan for 2022-23.

The Strategic Director of Social Care and Education submitted a report on the Youth Justice Plan for 2022-23.

The Deputy City Mayor for Social Care and Anti-Poverty introduced the item, noting that the recent Youth Service Awards had shown several examples of the positive impact of the Council’s work with young people in the criminal justice system.

The Strategic Director of Social Care and Education noted that due to the timetables set out by the National Youth Justice Board, the Plan had already been submitted and approved by the Board several months ago. Comments to build into the Plan for 2023-24 were welcomed.

The Head of Service for Early Help presented the item, it was noted that:

·         The format of the Plan had to be changed to fit the new template set out by the Board. However, the focus was still on examining the approach of Services, the performance of Services, and the financial picture. Celebrating achievements and sharing ambitions were a key part of the Plan.

·         Local successes included inroads in reducing the numbers of CLA entering the criminal justice system.

·         The prevention agenda remained a high priority.

·         The REACH Team pilot focused on reducing school exclusions. This had been successful and further funding had been received. 

·         There had been an emphasis on participation to ensure co-production.

·         KPIs were measured by the Government.

·         During the pandemic there were issues with post-16 employment retention due to casual contracts being ended quickly.

·         Another area of emphasis was work with victims, including meditation sessions.

In response to questions from Members and Youth Representatives, it was noted that:

·         The numbers of young people committing crime in Leicester was consistently reducing.

·         There was extensive work with schools to help raise awareness for the support available for vulnerable young people but also to make clear the consequences of crime.

·         Officers were not fond of the new template set out by the Board.

·         There had been a number of campaigns focusing on gang crime.

·         There had been a task and finish group into disproportionality in young people entering the criminal justice system. The group found that black males were more likely to enter the system at a earlier age and receive a more significant outcome. There was also a disproportion of white males in the system.

·         The Board gave the Council a grant, often late in the year. This year there had been an uplift of £90k in the grant. There was also additional funding for prevention work. This work was becoming increasingly dependent on grants from Government and other partners as opposed to being funded from the general fund. This made it difficult to have a longer-term approach.

·         The area of evidence-based interventions required more investment, however work with partners helped to ensure more efficient work.

·         There had been no additional funding to help with regard to the recent issues in the east of the city.

·         The Service used the Lundy model of participation and had a strong co-production arm.

AGREED:

1.    That the Commission requests that Officers enquire with the National Youth Justice Board to see comparison data with local comparator Council’s on serious youth violence and exploitation.

2.    That the Commission requests that Officers provide the findings of the task and finish group into disproportionality to Commission Members.