The Youth Justice Resource Hub is a platform to share and signpost to the latest practice and, where available, evidence and research. It is for youth justice professionals, academics, researchers, students and volunteers working to improving the lives and outcomes of children.
Please note that some of the material uploaded prior to 2020 may not be consistent with YJB’s Central Guiding Principle of Child First, this could include the language used or the structure of the intervention being shared. You may also find of interest the Child First checklist.
Vision
Our vision is for a Child First youth justice system: a youth justice system that sees children as children, treats them fairly and helps them to build on their strengths so they can make a constructive contribution to society. This will prevent offending and create safer communities with fewer victims.
Mission
The YJB is the only statutory body to have oversight of the entire youth justice system. We provide independent, evidence-based advice and leadership to drive improvements that increase children’s positive outcomes and prevent offending.
Members of the Youth Justice Board
A Child First approach is a priority that shapes our organisation, how we operate, and we work to pursue this ideal being reflected in the youth justice system. We want to improve outcomes for children in order to prevent offending and create safer communities, so effective collaboration with our partners will help ensure the justice system is fair, treating children as children and we can influence positive outcomes for children entering, during or leaving the justice system.
A collaborative approach helps evoke change. Sharing research, intelligence and knowledge can all help to shape recommendations to prevent harm through exploitation and reduce over-representation of children in the youth justice system – two of our YJB priorities. It also supports in developing strategies for early intervention and preventing children entering the system. Once a child enters the criminal justice system they are changed for life. Working with our partners in the youth justice sector and having a platform to share wider expertise, we can help positively impact change for children.
Our statutory functions:
- Monitor the youth justice system to understand how it is operating
- Distribute grants to local services
- Support the provision of IT services for youth justice services
- Collate and publish information
- Commission research to support practice development
- Identify and share evidence-informed practice across the sector
Learn more about the hub’s contributors
What is ‘Child First’?
The YJB’s vision for a child first youth justice system is of a youth justice system that sees children as children, treats them fairly and helps them to build on their strengths so they can make a constructive contribution to society. This will prevent offending and create safer communities with fewer victims. In defining further what we mean by this we have set out four tenets underpinning how all services in such a system should operate:
- 1.Prioritise the best interests of children and recognising their particular needs, capacities, rights and potential. All work is child-focused, developmentally informed, acknowledges structural barriers and meets responsibilities towards children.
- 2.Promote children’s individual strengths and capacities to develop their pro-social identity for sustainable desistance, leading to safer communities and fewer victims. All work is constructive and future-focused, built on supportive relationships that empower children to fulfil their potential and make positive contributions to society.
- 3.Encourage children’s active participation, engagement and wider social inclusion. All work is a meaningful collaboration with children and their carers.
- 4.Promote a childhood removed from the justice system, using pre-emptive prevention, diversion and minimal intervention. All work minimises criminogenic stigma from contact with the system.
For more information, please contact us here!