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A More Holistic Approach to Youth Justice
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
For too long, our justice system has been stuck in a reactive cycle, dealing with repeat offending rather than stepping in early to tackle the root causes.
Ministry of Justice figures show that 80% of prolific offenders committed their first crime as a child. A combination of instability at home, online exploitation, toxic peer groups, and past trauma can draw young people into crime, while the system around them fails to keep up.
Following the release of the Government’s Youth Justice White Paper, I questioned the Secretary of State on proposals to tighten Parenting Orders, These proposals include fines for parents who don’t engage with efforts to improve their children’s behaviour, beyond the current £1,000 cap — and, in the most serious cases, even introducing the possibility of jail time.
The government points to the fact that Parenting Orders have declined sharply, from more than 1,000 in 2009/10 to just 33 in 2022/2023. However, charities such as the Alliance for Youth Justice argue this reflects a better understanding of what actually works, that working with parents on a voluntary basis often leads to better outcomes for children. Of course, parents have a responsibility for their children’s behaviour. But if we start threatening prison sentences, we risk slipping back into the same old pattern: offending, custody, and then reoffending.
That’s why it’s so important that the broader direction of travel is more positive. This White Paper signals a shift towards early intervention and rehabilitation. Getting that balance right isn’t easy, we need to protect the public, while also giving young people a real chance to turn things around, but overall, this is a step in the right direction.
Through the introduction of new Youth Intervention Courts and tighter multi-agency coordination, particularly for children with SEND, this will offer the kind of holistic support that’s needed to understand their complex needs and stop young people from falling through the cracks of a system that has frequently locked them out.
There are also welcome moves away from custody and towards rehabilitation, alongside better protections for vulnerable children in care who are at risk of being drawn into crime, and a greater focus on community sentences. These changes matter, not least because the cost of reoffending is enormous, estimated at £20.9 billion a year, with the probation service already described as “teetering on the brink”.
The Liberal Democrats have long-called for a more community-based, restorative approach that helps divert children away from crime in the first place. In the coming weeks, I’ll continue to scrutinise these proposals to help ensure our justice system does what it should: protect victims while giving people the support they need to rebuild their lives.
