Read the text of this document (28 pages)
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Draft Hillingdon Youth Justice Service 5-year Strategy
Contents Page
1 Introduction and context
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2 Governance, Leadership and Partnerships
5
3 Performance data overview: 2019-2024
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4 Priority 1: Prevention and Early Intervention
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5 Priority 2: Over-representation and Disproportionality
14
6 Priority 3: Child-Centred Practice
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7 Priority 4: Re-offending
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8 Priority 5: Victims and Restorative Justice
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9 Conclusion
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Foreword
As we embark on this journey of shaping the future of youth justice services in Hillingdon over
the next five years, it is with great enthusiasm and dedication that I present this strategy
document. Our mission is clear: to create a safer, fairer, and more inclusive society for all
children, where their rights, needs, and potential are recogni sed and respected. Over the
years, our understanding of youth justice has evolved, driven by research, evidence, and the
voices of children themselves. We have learned that effective youth justice services require a
holistic, multi -disciplinary approach that addresses the underlying causes of offending
behaviour and promotes positive development and rehabilitation through a Child First
approach.
This strategy builds upon our achievements and experiences, while also charting a course for
innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement. It reflects our commitment to
embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of our work, ensuring that every child
has access to the support and opportunities they need to thrive.
Central to our strategy is the principle of early intervention and prevention, recognis ing that
addressing issues at the earliest possible stage can prevent escalation and reduce the risk of
future harm. We will work closely with partners across sectors to identify and respond to the
needs of children and their families and carers, providing tailored support and interventions
that address the root causes of offending and children’s safety and wellbeing.
Equally important is our commitment to restorative justice principles, which prioriti se
accountability, healing, and the repair of harm. We continue to involve children, victims, and
communities in the resolution of conflicts and the restoration of relationships, promoting
understanding, empathy, and reconciliation.
As we embark on this journey, we do so with humility and a recognition of the challenges that
lie ahead as we continue to deliver services post the Covid -19 pandemic. We know that
transforming youth justice services requires courage, perseverance, and a willingness to
challenge the status quo. But we also know that the rewards are great – safer communities,
brighter futures, and a more just society for all.
I would like to express my gratitude to all those who have contributed to the development of
this strategy – our dedicated staff, partner agencies, children, families, and communities. Your
insights, expertise, and commitment have been invaluable, and I am confident that together,
we can achieve our shared vision of a youth justice system that works for everyone.
Together, let us build a future where every child has the opportunity to fulfil their potential,
where second chances are not just offered but embraced, and where justice is not just served
but served with compassion, dignity, and fairness.
[signed]
Councillor Susan O’Brien, Cabinet Member for Children, Families & Education
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Introduction
Hillingdon council has a duty under S.38 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to provide youth
justice services to children 10-18 years of age. The principle aim of the Youth Justice Service
is to prevent offending by children, through early intervention, prevention, intervention, and
rehabilitation. The draft Hillingdon Youth Justice Service (HYJS) strategy sets out its approach
to work with children and families accessing youth justice services through early help and
prevention and statutory intervention. This 5-year strategy will be developed in consultation
with children, parents/carers and colleagues across the partnership and communities
reflecting on and reviewing its performance over the last 5 years and considering a range of
local and national drivers informing our youth justice work in Hillingdon.
“We are committed to taking a child first approach to understanding the challenges faced by
children and families including social deprivation, discrimination, trauma, unmet health needs,
and will actively empower children and families to improve outcomes by providing
opportunities for every child to succeed. We take a “justice for all” approach by supporting
victims, protecting the public and engaging our communities to divert children from entering
the criminal justice system.”
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) Strategic Plan 2024 -2027 states that “the YJB’s vision is for a
youth justice system that treats children as children” and sets out its requirements for a Child
First approach:
• Prioritising the best interests of children and recognising their needs and potential.
• Promoting children’s individual strengths and their capacities to develop pro -social
identities.
• Encouraging children’s active participation, engagement, and wider social inclusion.
• Promoting a childhood removed from the justice system.
Across the youth justice partnership in Hillingdon the use of the word “child” has been widely
adopted when discussing children who encounter the criminal justice system. Previous
language such as young people or adolescents diluted the focus that those who come into
contact with the youth justice system are children and should be supported as such. The work
of HYJS and the partnership seeks to support engagement with children in multiple spheres
from diversion through the delivery of school- based programme s s u c h a s Y o u r L i f e Y o u
Choose, early intervention through active use of Triage interventions and in statutory
interventions. Taking a locality, placed based approach by delivering services and
interventions to children within their context. Wider work across the local authority, with the
development of locality-based family hubs and spoke buildings provides well -resourced and
safe places to meet children within the community. Children told us that they are more likely
to engage with interventions in familiar surroundings and co ordinating locality delivery
supports engagement with wider services. The model works on supporting children to access
the right services, at the right time in the right place.
Our plan continues to be set within the context of ongoing public service reform, associated
organisational change, financial restraints and responding to the challenges which continue
post the Covid 19 pandemic. These circumstances present additional challenges to
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organisations as they seek to deliver their core business whilst also contributing to strategic
partnerships. However, the partnership approach to developing and implementing this Youth
Justice Plan has been informed by a commitment not only to maintain ou r investment in the
youth justice agenda but to enhance it through continued effective collaboration.
Our Priorities
Hillingdon Council is committed to putting residents first and reflects this commitment across
the council’s plans and services. Our youth justice priorities are directly aligned with th is
commitment, which will be set out in further detail in this document. The five priorities are:
1. Prevention and Early Intervention
2. Over-representation and disproportionality
3. Child-centred practice
4. Reducing re-offending
5. Victims and restorative justice
Context
Hillingdon is the second largest London borough, covering an area of 42 square miles over half
of which is a mosaic of countryside including canals, rivers, parks and woodland, interspersed
with historic towns and villages. It shares borders with Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire,
Surrey, Hounslow, Ealing, and Harrow. Hillingdon is home to Heathrow airport , which is one
of the main local employers, but also a significant entry point for children and young people
being trafficked into the country.
- Hillingdon has a higher proportion of 0 –19-year-olds than the London average with
26% and this proportion is expected to grow.
- There are approximately 120,700 children aged 0 -17 residing in the borough which
make up 39.69 % of population.
- 30,965 (25.65%) of these children are aged 10-17
- According to data from the End Child Poverty Coalition, which combines data from the
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS), there are
approximately 25,347 children in Hillingdon living in poverty , which is approximately
21%.
- At the 31
st March 2024 there were approximately 329 children looked after to
Hillingdon.
- 35% of all residents that are from a black and global majority background. Hillingdon
is an ethnically diverse borough with most black and global majority communities
residing in the south of the borough.
- 62% of Hillingdon children aged 10-17 are from a black and global majority background
(2021 Census)
- Our residents (aged 3+) speak at least 85 different languages - this is similar to most
other London boroughs and other large cities in England & Wales.
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- The 2021 Census tells us that 77.9% of our residents (aged 3+) have English as their
main language, followed by Punjabi (4.6%), Romanian (1.8%), Polish (1.7%) and Tamil
(1.6%).
- In 2023-2024 3,503 children had an active Education Healthcare plan. This number has
steadily increased at an average rate of approximately 11.6% over the last five years.
The YJS is located within the Children, Families and Education Directorate and as such the
Assistant Director of Prevention and Youth Justice is part of the senior management team in
Children's Services. The effectiveness of the YJS collaborative work has been recognised in
both our ILACS and SEND inspection outcomes. We have aligned the YJS with our Youth Offer
and Early Help under one Assistant Director which supports our holistic planning for
vulnerable adolescents. The full staffing structure and budget costs and contributions will be
included within annual youth justice plans.
Governance, Leadership and partnerships
HYJS is funded centrally and through the grant contributions from the Youth Justice Board and
statutory partner agencies, in accordance with the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. All funds are
used to deliver Youth Justice Services in Hillingdon.
The work of our HYJS is located within the broader context of our Safer Hillingdon Partnership
(SHP) and the Safeguarding Children's Partnership Board (SCPB). Both boards have operational
and strategic representation from all partner agencies. HYJS is represented at the SHP and
SCPB by the Corporate Director for Children , Families and Education . In achieving our
ambitions and vision for our children, we continue to receive full political and corporate
support and a level of financial investment which ensures that each year’s budget setting
considers both the needs of the service and the contingencies based on demographic growth
and increasing levels of complexity. Our elected member for Children, Families and Education
and the Chief Executive have an active interest and understanding of the youth justice agenda.
They scrutinise children’s services performance and practice updates in quarterly meetings
with the Senior Management Team. Complex and high-risk issues have oversight at this level
to ensure political, financial and strategic investment to keep children safe.
Safer Hillingdon
Partnership Board
Youth Justice Partnership
Board (YJSPB)
Children Safeguarding
board
Executive Leadership
Group (ELG)
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The YJSPB is co-chaired by the Corporate Director for Children, Families and Education and
the Detective Chief Inspector for the West Area Borough Command Unit which demonstrates
committed leadership. The YJSPB includes representatives from all of the key partner agencies
and operates in line with the YJB Governance and Leadership guidance. The Corporate
Director for Children, Families and Education is a member of every senior governance board
in the borough and can exert influence and leverage support and resources to further the
work of the YJSPB. Similarly, there is a direct understanding of other policy and strategy
landscapes to inform the YJSPB plan and to inform others’ strategies and plans to be
observant of YJS concerns. These include all Council Political meetings, health governance
which covers the borough, new ICB, all London DSC Group, West London DCS steering groups,
West London Commissioning Allianc e whilst maintaining instantaneous direct access to the
most senior leadership across the borough and region.
From His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) inspection in 2021, it was noted by the
inspectorate panel that we have a strong management board attendance, this has continued
since with an average of 73% of senior partners attending. N e w B o a r d m e m b e r s h a v e a n
induction to understand the role of the service and explore the expectations and contributions they
will be making to the service. Our governance and leadership arrangements are maturing and whilst
we believe we have a clear local vision and strategy for the delivery of a high-quality, personalised, and
responsive service for all children, we recognise the need to ensure that vision is promoted and
understood by all stakeholders. Our partnership relationships are strong at both strategic and
operational levels. Local resourcing levels have been retained despite significant financial challenges
for all the partners and the partn ership arrangements actively support effective service delivery. Our
Board members are active, own the youth justice agenda and recognise the contributions their own
agency makes to the it. For example, the ICB rep on the Board initiated a review of the health need of
the YJS cohort which resulted in the commissioning of dedicated SALT provision; whilst the Community
Safety rep has advocated YJS work and secured MOPAC funding to support early identification and
intervention of young people at risk of exploitation.
HMIP inspect youth justice services across England and Wales and form part of HYJS’
governance arrangements . This is completed through independent inspection, thematic
inspections and reports, recommendations, research and effective practice guidance.
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) for England and Wales is responsible for monitoring and
measuring our performance through the submission of national KPIs . The YJB undertakes
oversight activity to meet its statutory duty to monitor the operation of the youth justice
system. This function is undertaken in line with its independence from national and local
government and all named statutory partners.
The oversight process follows an ongoing cycle of:
• monitoring YJS performance against the oversight fields outlined and assigning
services to performance quadrants.
• identifying the scale and nature of support needs and/or areas of effective
performance and evidence-based practice
• co-ordinating improvement (and where necessary formal intervention).
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Performance data 2019-2024
Together with its partners Hillingdon YJS continues to realign resources to meet service
demand and the requirements of the wider public sector reform agenda, which supports
transformation of essential services in an evidenced based way to promote best practice.
The YJS informs and supports the Children ’s’ “High Fives”; Contextual Safeguarding, Neglect,
where our children live, Targeted Help, Our people. These 5 key strands of operational and
strategic activity drive improved outcomes for children in Hillingdon.
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) is responsible for monitoring a number of key performance
indicators and each local authority and youth justice partnership must submit quarterly data
against each. It is a condition of the Y JB Grant that it is used to achieve a positive reduction
across all performance indicators with data being publ ished by the Ministry of Justice on a
quarterly basis.
The following three performance indicators have been embedded within services and so data
has been captured over the years, so we have been able to measure our performance over a
longer period.
1. Reduction in First Time Entrants (FTE): children entering the criminal justice system for the
first time receiving a disposal at court or a caution.
2. Reduction in Re-offending: monitoring of children who receive a substantiative outcome
(not Triage) for a period of 12 months for any further offending and associated frequency.
3. Reduction in the use of custody : reduce the number of children who receive a custodial
sentence.
Our HYJS and the partner agencies and professionals, who work with them, have an impressive
track record of contributing to the realisation of our vision through effective preventative
work, as well as out-of-court and post-court case work. Our performance against the first-time
entrants’ national performance indicator is consistently strong with the rate below both
national and London averages. A focus on early intervention and prevention services across
the partnership has contributed to this, including a n effective working relationship between
the police and the HYJS with regards to decision making and the delivery of robust
assessments and interventions. Our custody rates have shown a gradual reduction over recent
years but with complex cohorts of childr en and a national rise in knife crime this remains an
area of priority focus. Performance with respect to re-offending should be considered within
the context of a much smaller cohort, due to our success at reducing FTEs, containing
individuals that often have more complex needs, higher levels of vulnerability and pose a
greater risk to others. These young people have a range of challenges and unmet needs, which
take longer to address and effect permanent changes in lifestyles and outcomes. As with the
national picture we have an over -representation of Black and mixed raced boys in custody
which is a priority of activity in this Youth Justice Strategy.
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Since April 2023 it has been a requirement of youth justice services to report on the following
new key performance indicators, with the first nationally published data expected in Spring
2025.
1. Suitable Accommodation
2. Education, training, and employment
3. Special educational needs and disabilities
4. Mental health care and emotional wellbeing
5. Substance misuse
6. Out of court disposals
7. Links to wider services
8. Management board attendance
9. Serious violence
10. Victims
Youth justice services have access to the youth justice application framework (YJAF) to view
data submitted and compare to national data. Data from quarters 1-3 for 2023-2024 on YJAF
tells us that Hillingdon is performing above national indicators in the proportion of children in
suitable accommodation (an average of 96% in Hillingdon compared to 86% nationally).
The proportion of children in suitable education, training, and employment at the end of their
order. Q1-3 showed 87% of school age children were in full time education at the end of their
intervention, like the 86% seen at the end of 2022/23. For the non -school age children, 67%
were in full-time education up from the 56% seen at the end of 2022/23. We also have a higher
than the national average number of children identified special educational needs and
disabilities (SEND) and additional learning needs (ALN) with a formal plan. This is reflective of
the links we have built with our partners in Education and SEND and continue to ensur e that
we collaborate with partners to ensure that it is child focused. It is a real strength of HYJS to
have a Speech and Language therapist embedded within the service to ensure all children
open to the YJS, AXIS and other prevention services such as Turnaround are offered speech
and language assessment at the earliest opportunity, to ensure there us an understanding of
the needs, collaboration with partners and interventions are personalised to maximise
positive outcomes for each child.
HYJS have reported an average of 39% of children open to the YJS with a screened or identified
need for an intervention to improve mental health or emotional wellbeing compared to 25.6%
of the national average for quarters 1-3 for 23-24. The well-resourced Health Hub within the
YJS combines the skills of a Liaison and Diversion worker, full time dedicated Speech and
Language Therapist and Child and Adolescent Mental Health practitioner to ensure a
coordinated approach to meeting the health needs of children entering the youth justice
system to promote positive outcomes.
The total number of outcomes have decreased over the five years, from 246 in 2019-2020 to
100 in 2023 -2024. It is positive that the number of court outcomes have decreased by 54%
over the 5 years. We have also seen a 65% decrease of out of court disposals and a 77.5%
decrease in Triage outcomes in the same period. The main cause of this is due to the increase
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in Community Resolutions being given for low-level offences. It is positive that in the last year
we have seen an increase in the rate of engagement as compared to the previous year.
The most common offence in 2023- 2024 was Violence against the person related, with 60
offences (29.13%). In 2021- 22, Drugs had been the most common offence, but this has
continued to decrease from 52 offences (28.42%) in 2021/22 to 12 offences (5.83%) in
2023/24. This is due to the continued decrease in triage offences, with drug possession
offences being dealt with via Community Resolutions. Burglary, Robbery, and The ft and
Handling offences accounted for 33.98% of all offences up from 25.23% in the previous year
and 11.48% in 2021/22. For the second year in a row, “Burglary other than dwelling” was the
single most common offence, representing 9.22% of all offences. It is important to note that
a l l 1 9 o f t h e s e o ff e n c e s w e r e c o m m i tt e d b y 2 c h i l d r e n . H o w e v e r , t h e n e x t m o s t c o m m o n
offence was “Possess knife blade / sharp pointed article in a public place” with 14 offences,
committed by 14 different children. HYJS continues to work with its partners, and this remains
a priority for the Safer Hillingdon Partnership.
Hillingdon monitors Serious Violence rates with the assistance of the YJB’s “Serious Youth
Violence Tool”. The rate of s erious violence increased in 2023 to 7.5, up from 5.3 in 2022
which has put us in line with our YJS Family. This is still lower than historic figures as outlined
in the table below. The rate of serious violence offences has fallen in since its peak of 10.7 in
2021. Hillingdon’s rate of serious violence offences has remained below the London rate .
Robbery continues to be the most common SY V offence, accounting for 79% of offences in
Q1-3 2023/24.
Rate of Serious Violence offences - Year ending December
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Hillingdon 4.5 10.5 10.7 5.3 7.5
London 17.5 13.8 12.4 10.4 10.5
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--- Hillingdon YJS Priorities ---
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Priority 1: Prevention and Early Intervention
Link to Council Priorities : A thriving economy, Safe and strong communities, Thriving
healthy households.
This priority seeks to address the root causes of offending behaviour and explore the wider
determinates of social inequalities , intervene at the earliest possible stage to prevent
escalation and reduce the risk of future harm , ensuring the safety and security of our
communities.
HYJS is situated within the Children directorate and falls under the umbrella of Prevention and
Youth Justice. HYJS, and its partners has an impressive track record of contributing to the
realisation of our vision through effective preventative work. This continues to be an area of
focus over the next 5 years to further develop our prevention offer. Over the last 5 years, we
have seen our First-time entrants (FTE) figures decrease during the COVID pandemic and rise
again, however we remain below pre-pandemic levels.
2019-2020 2020-2021 2021-2022 2022-2023 2023-2024
Number of
first-time
entrants
64
48
38
46
46
As mentioned previously and outlined in the table below, the total number of outcomes have
decreased over the five years, from 246 in 2019 -2020 to 100 in 2023-2024. It is positive that
the number of court outcomes have decreased by 54% over the 5 years. We have also seen a
65% decrease of out of court disposals and a 77.5% decrease in Triage outcomes in the same
period. The main cause of this is due to the increase in Community Resolutions being given
for low-level offences.
Outcomes 2019-2020 2020 - 2021 2021 - 2022 2022 – 2023 2023 – 2024
Court 124 76 47 57 57
Pre-Court 122 94 87 56 43
Of Which Triage 98 73 65 33 22
Total 246 170 134 113 100
In the year 2023 -2024 we have seen a varied rate of engagement for children receiving a
community resolution (CR) with an average rate of 31% of children consenting to receiving
intervention with HYJS. This is an increase from the previous year where we had a n average
of 9% of children receiving an intervention.
Our AXIS service , unique to Hillingdon, continues to offer understanding of the complexity,
risk and safety and wellbeing concerns of local children in 'real time'. AXIS is instrumental in
identifying children on the periphery of involvement in C hild Sexual Exploitation, C hild
Criminal Exploitation, children arrested for Possession with intent to supply, or those that are
linked to suspected 'gang' involvement and serious youth violence . AXIS work with children
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referred on a voluntary basis or will refer them to Children's Social Care where appropriate.
AXIS also supports the wider partnership and local services’ engagement with children and
will provide headline data to inform how and where services are delivered in Hillingdon.
In December 2022, Hillingdon was provided funding (ending March 2025) from the Ministry
of Justice (MoJ) to mobilise Project Turnaround, to intervene at an earlier stage to prevent
children entering the criminal justice system under the Early Help framework. Turnaround has
been a success in Hillingdon, and the data shows we have exceeded the MoJ quota of children
who ha ve voluntarily engaged with this project and have seen positive outcomes for this
cohort for children.
2022-2023 2023-2024 2024-2025
MoJ Quota 9 26 27
Number of c hildren
engaged with
Turnaround
9 32 XXX
The Metropolitan Police’s Pan-London Project Engage, funded by the VRU (Violence Reduction
Unit) was set up in January 2024 to engage with children in police custody, capturing the
teachable, reachable moment to build a positive relationship to understand the causes of their
offending and identify bespoke interventions and services best placed to divert children from
the criminal justice system. The Engage team foster s good relationships with partners,
including community and voluntary groups to support children in their own communities and
provide opportunities through social inclusion to divert them from criminality.
Our focus under this priority is to embed long term early help systems to enable multi-agency
intervention at the earliest opportunity, to divert children from the criminal justice system,
build resilience, and promote positive outcomes . This means effective intervention to be
targeted towards children and families at risk of experiencing adversity through a myriad of
issues including poverty, social exclusion, familial violence, mental health, disability, substance
misuse and school exclusions. We believe residents should be able to access the right help at
the right time. The Family h ub strategy1 will support this through having integrated services
across the disciplines of Maternity, Health, Education, Social Care, and the Voluntary Sector
under the principles of Early Help and Intervention, to provide accessible services to families,
situated within their own communities, at their point of need. The offer will link support for
the whole family where there are children and young people up to the age of 19 (25 for those
with SEND), acknowledging the impact of the right support and care, in the right place, at the
right time on the future lives of children.
Success measures:
- Ensure assessments support early identification of risks and vulnerabilities.
1 Hillingdon Family Hub Strategy 2023-2025
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- Continued prevention service to support children at risk of entering the criminal justice
system after MoJ Turnaround funding ceases.
- Stronger partnerships with colleagues across the partnership to identify children most
at risk at the earliest opportunity.
- Reduced FTE rates.
- A reduction in suspensions and permanent exclusions in schools
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Priority 2: Over-representation and Disproportionality
Linked to Hillingdon Council Priority: Safe and strong communities, Thriving healthy
households.
Addressing disproportionality in youth justice is crucial for ensuring fairness, equity, and
justice within our society. Disproportionality refers to the overrepresentation of certain
groups, particularly from Black, Asian, and other global majority backgrounds, within the
y o u t h j u s ti c e s y s t e m . I t i s i m p e r a ti v e t o r e c o g nise and rectify these disparities to create a
system that treats all children equally, regardless of their background. By addressing
disproportionality, we can reduce the barriers that prevent children from accessing support,
thereby promoting trust in the system.
The Youth Justice Board states:
The Youth Justice Board is committed to recognising and addressing inequality and the children
who are involved with the youth justice system reflect a range of social inequalities. There is
over-representation of children in care, children living in poverty, those with neurodivergent
conditions or speech and language difficulties, and those who have experienced trauma.
However, the most persistent and significant overrepresentation is children from minoritised
racial communities.
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The population of Hillingdon has changed significantly over the last decade as outlined in the
2021 census data:
• White British made up 50% of the 10-17yr old population in Hillingdon in 2011, this
dropped to 31% in 2021.
• Asian children made up 24% of the pop. in 2011, this increased to 34% in 2021.
• Black African children made up 6% of the pop. in 2011, this is increased to 9% in
2021.
• Any other ethnic group saw the largest % increase of 174%.
In Hillingdon, black children accounted for 27% of stop and searches compared to 13% of the
population in the year 2023-2024. However, 81% of these stop and searches had an outcome
of NFA (no further action). There has been a large decrease in the number of children on Bail
and those released under investigation in November 2023 (76) compared to February 2024
(19). Black children made up 42% of children bailed/released under investigation in November
2023 but now account for 21% due to an increased focus in this area to reduce the number of
children subject to a release under investigation . Our data tells us that Black and Mixed
children are less likely to plead guilty; in 2023-2024 8% of black and mixed heritage children
were found guilty compared to 3% of White children.
In Hillingdon, black and mixed children are more likely to experience adverse childhood
experiences, such as poverty, neglect, and parental conflict, in the early years of their lives.
2 Youth_Justice_Board_for_England_and_Wales_Strategic_Plan_2024-27.odt (live.com)
15
Black and mixed heritage children account for 18% of children on a CP plan in Hillingdon, whilst
making up 6% of the population of children in Hillingdon.
Black children in Hillingdon are 1.4x more likely to be severely obese compared to other
ethnicities. 33% of Hillingdon’s current looked after children are of Black or Mixed ethnicity.
Black looked after children were less likely to have their health assessment up to date, 72%
compared to 95% for White children. They were less likely to have immunisations up to date,
66% compared to 83% for White children. White children had the lowest amount of tooth
decay in 5-year-olds.
In terms of education outcomes, 29% of exclusions and 33% of suspensions were from Black
& Mixed Ethnicities in the 22/23 Academic Year. Boys (52%) were significantly more likely to
not have achieved at least the expected standard in Early Learning Goals by age 5 compared
to Girls (70%), with Other ethnic boys (48%) and Black Boys (50%) with the lowest %.
Illustrated below is the Hillingdon YJS data regarding outcomes for children in the youth justice
system.
Ethnicity 2019-2020 2020 – 2021 2021 – 2022 2022 – 2023 2023 – 2024
White 44.83% 50.36% 55.56% 49.45% 45.05%
Black 24.71% 17.53% 14.81% 18.68% 19.78%
Asian 15.52% 16.06% 12.04% 6.59% 13.19%
Mixed 13.79% 10.95% 12.96% 16.48% 14.29%
Other 1.15% 5.11% 4.63% 8.79% 7.69%
Black and Asian ethnic children saw an increase in both the number and proportion of children
compared to the previous year. White and Mixed Ethnicities decreased in both the number
and proportion of clients compared to the previous year. The data pre and post pandemic
tells us that fewer B lack and Asian children received an outcome during the COVID period
compared to their white counterparts that received a higher proportion of outcomes however
we see an opposite trend for both sets of children coming out of the pandemic.
Outcomes
Black children have consistently been over -represented in Court and Custodial outcomes,
although this has been decreasing in recent years. However, the disproportionality in court
and custodial outcomes for mixed race children has been increasing in the last 5 years. Asian
children are under-represented at every stage of the Youth Justice service.
*GE*GEM, Global Ethnic Majority M, Global Ethnic Majority
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Children Looked after
Looked after children are over-represented in the criminal justice system in England and
Wales. Looked after children and those with care experience are particularly vulnerable and
often the victims of trauma and exploitation.
The table below shows the numbers of children open to HYJS that are on a Child in need (CIN)
plan, Child Protection (CP) plan and Children looked After (CLA) . In 23-24 20.9% of children
open to HYJS were looked after, compared with 0.88% of Hillingdon’s 10-17 population
2020-2021 2021-2022 2022-2023 2023-2024
CIN/CP # 49
38 31 31
% 35.8%
35.2% 34.1% 34.1%
CLA # 19
9 18 19
% 13.9%
8.3% 19.8% 20.9%
The London Reducing Criminalisation of looked after children and care leavers protocol3 was
published in March 2021 and sets out the roles and responsibilities of all agencies involved in
the care of looked after children and care leavers, in reducing unnecessary criminalisation.
HYJS continue to develop its response to this, supporting care homes in managing conflict and
behaviour using trauma informed approaches, and advocating for children looked after to
reduce them from being criminalised.
Speech and Language
Children in the youth justice system are significantly more likely to have underlying speech
and language needs compared to their peers. Research shows that a large proportion of these
children have unmet and undiagnosed speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN),
which often remain unrecognised throughout their lives. These challenges can manifest in
various ways, including difficulties in understanding and using language, which in turn affects
their ability to communicate effectively, understand legal proceedings, and engage with
services.
Many of these children come from backgrounds where early intervention for speech and
language issues may have been limited or non -existent. Factors such as socio -economic
disadvantage, lack of access to specialist services, and environments that do not sup port
language development contribute to the underdiagnosis of these needs. Additionally,
behavioural issues and academic struggles often associated with language difficulties may be
misinterpreted as intentional defianc e, rather than being recognised as sy mptoms of
underlying SLCN.
3 Reducing criminalisation of looked-after children and care leavers | London City Hall
17
As a result, these children may struggle to articulate their thoughts, understand instructions,
or engage in verbal problem-solving, making them more vulnerable to misunderstandings and
conflicts with people in authority. In the context of the youth justice system, this can lead to
a cycle where communication breakdowns exacerbate behavioural issues, leading to an
increased vulnerability to being exploited by others, or engaging in offending behaviour.
Addressing these unmet needs is crucial for breaking this cycle. Early identification and
intervention can improve outcomes for these children and reduce the likelihood of children
entering the criminal justice system.
Since March 2018, HYJS have commissioned Speech and Language Therapy input. This input
was initially commissioned to investigate the level of speech, language and communication
needs (SLCN) of children known to HYJS. The service has now evolved so that all children
known to HYJS, AXIS and Turnaround are offered an assessment of their speech, language and
communication skills. Between March 2018 and March 2024, 480 children received a speech
and language assessment whilst allocated to HYJS or the AXIS service.
The table below shows the percentage of children that have presented with an underlying
speech, language or communication need (SLCN), and those with moderate -severe speech
language or communication needs (MS-SLCN) over the past five years:
2019-2020 2020-2021 2021-2022 2022-2023 2023-2024
Number of
children assessed 108 64 79 84 79
% of children
presented with
SLCN
66% 72% 71% 58% 71%
% of children
presented with
MS-SLCN
69% 61% 61% 67% 55%
The data shows there is an over -representation of children with speech and language needs
as compared to the general population; 15% of the general population present with SLCN and
6% of the general population present with moderate-severe SLCN.
Speech and Language training has been delivered to police colleagues at Polar Park custody
suite which has resulted in an increase of children being refused detention and being invited
to attend a Caution +3 interview at a later date. Children in custody are provided with
distraction kits which are also used in interviews with children. A session has been held with
Magistrates where guidance was offered to consider how they communicate with children in
the court room and are guided by HYJS staff attending c ourt to ensure that children
understand the process and are supported in the right way. Refresher training has also been
provided to HYJS volunteer community panel members who have reported back to state that
they have found it extremely useful when chairing panel meetings and communicating with
children.
HYJS staff are provided with communication packs that support them in their work with
children. The packs contain resources for professionals to use during sessions to support
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children’s attention and listening, social communication and language. For example: fidget
toys/objects, pens and whiteboards.
The strategic partnership is actively working on developing a disproportionality plan and has
asked ‘’How do we, as a partnership address disproportionality experienced by children in
Hillingdon within a Youth Justice context?’’. This plan will focus on identifying the root causes
of disproportionality and implementing targeted interventions to address them effectively. By
working together to tackle this issue, we can create a youth justice system that is fair,
equitable, and supportive for all children.
Success measures:
- The production of a disproportionality action plan by the strategic management board
in consultation with children, families, community groups and other stakeholders.
- Increased training across partnerships to recognise and address bias and
discrimination and develop an understanding of cultural humility.
- Increased provisions and interventions for children with protected characteristics.
- Reduction of overrepresentation of certain groups, particularly from Black, and mixed
heritage children within the youth justice system.
- Increased trust in the justice system among children, families and communities
affected by disproportionality.
- Collaborate with community organisations, stakeholders, and affected communities to
address disproportionality effectively.
- Develop and implement targeted initiatives and approaches to address the root causes
effectively.
- Monitor the progress and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions regularly.
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Priority 3: Child-Centred Practice
Linked to Hillingdon Council Priority: Safe and strong communities, Thriving healthy
households.
Child-centred practice focuses on the holistic needs of children and their families, promoting
their health, well-being, and positive development. By placing children at the centre, we aim
to create thriving, healthy households where every child can reach their full potential. It
recognises children as active participants in their own lives and advocates for their rights, well-
being, and development, creating nurturing environments where every child can thrive.
HYJS recognises the importance of listening to the voice of the child and using it to inform
service delivery. Children actively participate in staff interviews and have had the opportunity
to pose their own questions to candidates and have supported the successful recruitment of
three YJS Officers in the past year.
In 2023-2024 HYJS board members received training from children open to the youth justice
system called Walking in Our Shoes: YJS Edition whereby children shared their experiences of
the criminal justice system, facilitated activities to provide an insight to board members on
the service they receive from professionals in Hillingdon and wider partners, and presented
the voices of other children open to HYJS. As a result, board members were able to consider
the approaches used in HYJS, considering ‘what works’ in terms of the impact service delivery
has on children. They also reflected on the importance of early intervention and prevention
across the wider partnership, and considered how they would embed in their respective
services. Following this it has been a commitment to have the voice of the child as a standing
agenda item at all board meetings. This has allowed children’s experiences to be brought to
the board to develop understanding of the child’s journey through the criminal justice system
and where any challenges/barriers are addressed to ensure there is a child first approach
across the partnership.
HYJS prides itself on the collaboration with partners and
has recently been awarded the
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Lead Quality Mark with Child First
Commendation by Microlink PC. This quality mark highlights the strong partnership working
across local authority and health services in Hillingd on. In 2023-2024 HYJS provided bespoke
speech, language, and communication training to colleagues in the Metropolitan police
working in our local police custody suite, Polar Park. As a result, we have found reduced
numbers of children being detained in custody, and increased use of Caution plus 3 interviews.
As a result of ongoing work with the custody suite, they have embedded a child- centred
approach to custody. Children have access to distraction kits, custody video-books as well as
access to child-friendly leaflets outlining the custody process, and possible outcomes. Custody
staff have also received speech and language training which has supported custody staff to
ensure that they are meeting the speech and language needs of children in police custody.
The well-resourced health hub within the YJS combines the skills of a Liaison and Diversion
worker, Speech and Language therapist and Child and Adolescent Mental Health practitioner
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to ensure a co-ordinated approach to meeting the health needs of children entering the youth
justice system to promote positive outcomes.
The YJS Education and Employment Officer ensure s all children open to HYJS have their
education, training and employment (ETE) needs adequately assessed and the appropriate
provision is provided both in the community and in custody with the support of partner
agencies. This includes Under 16 education and post 16 provision. In the last five years we
have experienced a reduction of ETE providers and face barriers in achieving ETE places for
children. However, there are good partnerships with colleagues with Education and SEND
which supports a collaborative approach in keeping children in education, and re -engaging
those children who are NEET or missing from education. HYJS is an accredited centre with AQA
and provides children with the opportunity to acquire AQA qualifications as a stepping stone
to further ETE pathways.
HYJS have developed the intervention 'My Support Plan' which is utilised to support
practitioners get to know the children they are working with, understand their life experiences
and how it forms part of their identity. The support plan focusses on diversity to understand
the child beyond their offence. This is designed as the initial piece of work in the intervention
to begin to build rapport, get to know the child and create SMART targets, which has been
evidenced in case file audits and has received positive feedback from children and families.
HYJS believe children have the right to be heard and participate in decisions that affect them.
Capturing feedback from children and families provides valuable insights into their
experiences, perspectives and understanding of the criminal justice process. One of the
ambitions of the YJB strategic plan 2024-2027
4 is to influence and develop policy and practice
of child first across the youth justice system, which includes improving the court experience
and outcomes for children. We capture children’s experience of court proceedings to ensure
that they are fair, transparent, and based on accurate information. It allows for a more
balanced and comprehensive understanding of the situation, reducing the risk of
misinterpretation or bias.
Children and families are also involved in every step of their involvement with HYJS. The ir
participation in agreeing interventions and reviewing their progress leads to better outcomes
in terms of their well-being, behaviour, and compliance with court orders. When children feel
list ened to and respect ed, they are more lik ely t o eng age positively with int erventions and
take responsibility for their actions. Co-production and participation from children and
families also helps professionals identify risks or protective factors and inform decisions aimed
at addressing their needs and preventing further harm.
Our focus under this priority is to further develop our child first approach and support active
participation and engagement of children and families to encourage co -production of
intervention plans and resources.
Success measures:
4 Youth_Justice_Board_for_England_and_Wales_Strategic_Plan_2024-27.odt (live.com)
21
- A commitment to continue to commission training/deliver tailored workshops to
further develop practitioner’s understanding of child centred practice.
- Speech and language training to be delivered to wider partnerships such as
magistrates, and refresher training to be delivered to local police custody suite and YJS
staff.
- Increased evidence of participation with children to inform service delivery.
- Achieving strengthened relationships with colleges and mainstream schools in
Hillingdon.
- Improved pre -emptive action across the partnership to prevent suspensions and
exclusions and widen opportunities for vulnerable learners.
- An increase in the availability of ETE providers for our children.
- Better collation of children’s feedback regarding their experiences in police custody,
court and HYJS.
22
Priority 4: Reducing Re-offending.
Linked to Hillingdon Council Priority: Safe and strong communities, Thriving healthy
households.
Hillingdon Youth Justice Service prioritises the best interest of children and focuses on
understanding children’s identity, using trauma informed relationship-based practice w hen
working with children to divert and prevent children from offending and re -offending. This
includes addressing our re-offending rates and ensuring we have the right process in place to
support children’ s desistance against further offending. Our commitment to reducing re -
offending is key to creating safe and strong communities. By providing rehabilitation, support,
and positive deve lopment opportunities, we can break the cycle of offending and promote
the reintegration of children into society.
The Proven rate of reoffending data for the period 2021/22, published by the Ministry of
Justice, demonstrated a decrease in reoffending (40.5% to 37.5%) when compared to the
previous financial year. However, when we compared this to our local data, we saw a large
discrepancy. Our loca l data showed a reoffending rate of 2 6.6%, however due to the
limitations in both the local and published data sets, we estimate our true reoffending rate to
be 32.8% which is slightly above the National (32.1%) and below the London average (33.4%).
The published data indicates an increase in the frequency of reoffending with an average of
2.93 further offences compared to 2.13 for the previous year. This increase was also shown
in our local data. It is important to note that the 2020/21 cohort was partly tracked through
the COVID lockdown periods of 2020, and this is likely to affect the 2020/21 reoffending
data.
The result of having a small cohort of children entering the youth justice system is that it only
takes a small increase in offending to significantly impact the percentage change. The
reduction of the cohorts demonstrates the positive impact of early intervention programmes,
effective triage and diversion. Those children who do re-offend, although reduced in number,
are often those with the most complex needs. The YJS continues to use the YJB re offending
tracker tool, deep dive audits, quality assurance frameworks and a focus on the whole family
approach to better understand this cohort and support improved outcomes.
In 2023/24, 22 children were triaged out of the criminal justice system in comparison to the
46 cases entering the system and receiving a formal disposal for the first time. In the previous
year, of the 43 triages received, 6 (14%) went on to reoffend within the next 12 months.
Additionally, 24 children received a community resolution in 2023/24, with 14 of these
proceeding to an intervention. In the previous year, of the 37 clients who received a
community resolution, 6 (16.2%) reoffended within 12 months. 0 of the 2 children who
engaged with the community resolution reoffended.
HYJS acknowledge the following factors that have contributed to the reduction of re-
offending in Hillingdon:
- Stable accommodation including care placements.
- Early resettlement planning
- Access to education, training, and employment
23
- Collaboration between the partnership
HYJS are committed to a strengths-based, constructive resettlement approach and ensure that
our resettlement work is based on the “5 C’s" – Constructive, Co-created, Customised,
Consistent and Co -ordinated. HYJS has a dedicated experienced champion who leads on
resettlement to ensure practice and delivery continues to evolve. Continuous partnerships
with health and education services supports the transition from custody to the community.
T h e r e v i e w o f a l l c u s t o d y c a s e s at the Hillingdon Access to Resource Panel ensures joint
strategic oversight in planning and resource allocation.
The latest data on the Use of Custody shows that the number of children in Hillingdon
receiving a custodial sentence in 2022/23 decreased to 7, compared to 8 for the previous year.
The rate per 1,000 of the 10- 17 population use of custody data for Hillingdon in this period
was 0.22. Children sentenced to custody often represent the highest risk, and the imposition
of a custodial sentence by the court are in response to the offences committed. Data analysis
indicates that children in Hillingdon from the Global Ethnic Majority are 3 times more likely to
receive a custodial sentence. However , please note due to their being such a small cohort of
custodial outcomes, small changes in the data will have large impacts in these figures. The
Hillingdon YJSPB are committed to understand and taking action to address
overrepresentation with a robust Disproportionality action plan and associated partnership
activity.
At the end of 2023/24 there was 1 child remanded into Youth Detention Accommodation
(YDA), compared to 3 children at the end of 2022/23. There were 10 remands started in
2 0 2 3 / 2 4 , w i t h a n a v e r a g e ti m e o p e n o f 3 6 d a y s . T h i s i s b o t h a d e c l i n e i n t h e n u m b e r o f
remands and length open when compared to the previous year, which had 14 remands
starting for an average length of 63 days. Like our custody data, Black and Mixed-Race children
are disproportionally over -represented, accounting for 69% of the remands star ting in
2023/24.
HYJS recognised a need for improved transitions work with Probation, which has been a
priority for 2023 -2024. We continue to deliver our transitions work without a seconded
probation officer which could have significantly impacted on transitions; however, we have
worked to ensure alternative interim arrangements have been established whilst a longer-
term solution is secured . A t HY JS we aim to ensure all transition plan are personalised and
have had the added benefit of welcoming a pilot project in AXIS focusing on the transition
ages (18 -24) where other support services will drop, leaving young people at risk of gang
affiliation and risk of further serious violence. We recognise that transitioning to adulthood is
a journey not an event, and every young person will experience this journey differently. Having
this focus requires practitioners to think beyond child/adult silos and consider the nee ds of
each individual, and how they can be protected. We aim to build on the support and resources
already available across the partnership to ensure all children are effectively supported into
adulthood.
24
Success measures:
- A continued reduction of our re-offending rates.
- Increased resources to address critical transition periods e.g. leaving custody,
transition to adulthood.
- HYJS to continue to strengthen relationships with the youth custody service and
custodial establishments to ensure children are receiving the right services in custody.
- HYJS to continue to review the effectiveness of interventions.
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Priority 5: Victims and Restorative Justice
Linked to Hillingdon Council Priority: Safe and strong communities, Thriving healthy
households.
Vi c ti m a n d r e s t o r a ti v e j u s ti c e f o c u s o n t h e n e e d s o f t h e v i c ti m , p r o v i d i n g t h e m w i t h a n
opportunity to heal and recover from the harm they have experienced. It gives victims a voice
and an active role in the justice process, empowering them and helping them to regain a sense
of control over their lives. Restorative justice holds children accountable for their actions in a
meaningful way, promoting a deeper understanding of the impact of their behavio ur.
Hillingdon Youth Justice Service (HYJS) strives to provide high quality services to victims in line
with The Victim’s Code5. The Victim’s Code sets out the 12 minimum standards that must be
provided to victims of crime by organisations in England and Wales.
2021/2022 2022/2023 2023-2024
Number of victims
reached/contacted
33 20 21
% of victims
consenting to RJ
33% 50% 90%
In the year 2023-2024 HYJS successfully contacted 21 victims, a slight increase from 20 the
previous year . Of the victims that wanted to engage with restorative justice, 71% (15)
requeste d a l e tt e r o f a p o l o g y and 29% (4) agreed to a face-to-face restorative justice
conference. Whilst the number of victims reached has reduced, we have increased our
engagement rates with victims which is positive.
49 children completed a Restorative Justice screening in 2023-2024. A health screening and
Speech and Language assessment is completed with all children prior to their R estorative
Justice screening to ensure that the process is delivered in a bespoke and meaningful way
(e.g., the delivery of RJ and victim awareness work with autistic children is carefully
considered). As a result, 30 children agreed to engage in restorative justice and feedback from
children and families regarding th is process, and the victi m empathy sessions has been
positive.
All victims are offered home visits unless they are corporate victims or reside out of the
Hillingdon borough. The home visits consist of victims speaking about the impact of the crime,
discussing RJ and choosing the reparation project/s the child will complete to help repair the
harm caused. HYJS have an extensive reparation leaflet which includes fifteen projects that
cater to children’s diversity and communication needs. All victims are asked if they require
additional support and if so, a referral is made to Victim Support who provide practical,
emotional and advocacy support.
5 Code of Practice for Victims of Crime in England and Wales (Victims' Code) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
26
If a victim do es not w a n t t o r eceiv e furt h er sup port fr om Victim Su ppo r t , t he RJ t eam w ill
complete a victim safety plan with them to address any risk posed. This plan can also be shared
with police if the victim agrees.
The victim safety plan includes:
• Scenarios/places where the victim feels safe and unsafe.
• Safe Words.
• Trusted adults and services they can contact.
• Emergency contacts.
• External services that can provide support.
Victims are provided with an effective and inclusive approach to addressing harm and
resolving conflicts within our communities. They promote healing, accountability, and
reconciliation, leading to safer, more resilient, and more cohesive communities. Feeback
received from victims illustrates how powerful restorative justice is, and the impact it has had
on them:
In addition to the direct work with victims , our Victims and Restorative Justice offer extends
to supporting our partners address conflict and harm in a more positive way. In the year 2023-
2024 we have provided restorative justice training to all secondary schools across Hillingdon
and have received positive feedback for those that attended.
“You’re very helpful. I was nervous and anxious before the conference, but the
conference went well. I came out feeling better in myself because it had been spoken
about.” Victim
“From a parent’s perspective, you included my daughter and gave her
a voice. You could have just listened to what I said, because she’s a
child and I’m the parent but you didn’t, you gave her a voice in the
process. Going into that conference, I didn’t realise how much it
affected me. By sitting in the conference, I could let it go; it felt done
and dusted. It felt like there was justice within the conference. You are
in a vulnerable situation and once you walk out of the conference,
they are left with the thoughts and feelings that you have shared. You
are no longer the only one walking around with those thoughts and
feelings.” Victim’s parent.
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