Eng & Wales: Supporting vulnerable children in the youth justice system.

24th November 2010

A review of the youth criminal justice system in England and Wales carried out by the Prison Reform Trust, Seen and heard: supporting vulnerable children in the youth justice system, has provided lessons that other States, including Ireland, should take great heed of.

Children with learning difficulties and other mental impairments have a greater propensity to end up in custody than other youths because the system in the England and Wales is failing to recognise their needs (Some 23% of young offenders have very low IQs of less than 70, and 25% have special educational needs – a far higher proportion than in the general population). 

Youth justice agencies are not doing enough to identify and make provision for children’s support needs. This is seen as the most significant factor in determining the likelihood of whether or not a youth will have a custodial sentence imposed, their behaviour and attitude in court often being a decisive factor.

Only approximately 50% of youth offending staff received training to help identify children with these particular needs and impairments, even fewer used tools or procedures to discover identify children with learning disabilities, and less then 10% kept statistics on the number of such children serving court orders.

It is suggested that as a result these agencies are not fulfilling their legal duty to prevent discrimination and that there could be a potential breach of the right to a fair trial, under article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as children with learning difficulties are unable to understand the legal and judicial process.

It is essential that the needs of young offenders are identified at the earliest possibility available. Beginning this process only upon entry to custody is far too late, especially when viewed in light of the causal relationship between youth offending and contact with the formal justice system. It is to be hoped that children with learning difficulties will be identified before they are presented before youth justice agencies but if not it is essential they do not let any child pass through their doors without analysing their educational and mental needs.