While the Social Exclusion Action Plan does not include new proposals specifically on the youth justice system, it contains a great deal that chimes with the YJB’s approach, for example, on the importance of early intervention, and a preventive approach to tackling social exclusion
The plan also refers in general terms to how reform of the youth justice system has played its part in improving outcomes for children and young people and on the importance of prevention programmes.
In addition, the paper contains a youth inclusion and support panel case study, and quotes youth offending teams (YOTs) as a good example of multi-agency services. The plan refers specifically to the increase in the number of parenting interventions delivered by YOTs.
The document says that, while poverty has been reduced and other outcomes improved, more needs to be done to tackle social exclusion. In particular, the focus should be on tackling the “cycles of disadvantage” that can lead to social exclusion being passed from one generation to the next.
The plan contains five guiding principles:
- better identification and earlier intervention
- identifying ‘what works’
- promoting multi-agency working
- ‘personalising’ rights and responsibilities
- supporting achievement, and managing under-performing services
Specific proposals include:
- establishing 10 health-led parenting support demonstration projects from pre-birth to age 2
- improving the skills of midwives and health visitors to promote support and intervention during the early years, and developing commissioning guidance to encourage the spread of best practice.
The government will also be building on the Every Child Matters reforms by:
- publishing a Green Paper in the autumn on children in care, setting out its proposals to transform outcomes for this high-risk group
- publishing a revised and updated Teenage Pregnancy Strategy
- launching a series of pilots to test different approaches to tackling mental health and conduct disorders in childhood
- continuing to improve provision around parenting support and training.
The YJB welcomes the publication of the Social Exclusion Action Plan, and is committed to working with its partners in government to ensure that the youth justice system contributes to tackling social exclusion and measures are taken that reduce the risk of all children and young people becoming involved in offending