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Introduction: The prevalence of substance use among young adults has been increasing in Turkiye. Probation as a form of execution continues to grow in popularity around the world, as it has the potential for more successful outcomes than closed institutional execution methods. However, in the face of changing societal and individual needs, the probation system must rapidly adapt to current public realities, especially with new approaches, including the use of purposeful physical movement for young adults who are obliged due to illegal substance use. These competencies are the ability to regulate emotions, manage social relationships, and make responsible decisions. Objective: It aims to implement active games, including physical activities, that support the social and emotional competencies of individuals in probation sentence. Methods: This study presents the results of a pilot program held in Turkiye under an Erasmus + Key Action 3 project entitled Active Games for Change (AG4C), which includes a range of innovative face-to-face active games that were specifically created and designed to support the development of identified social emotional competencies in a probation directorate that serves young adult offenders. The study was carried out with 50 young adult offenders. The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) model, which defines five social and emotional skills (self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision making, relationship skills, social awareness), was used to support observation and game design. The present study involved the codesign of a total of 18 active games to develop these five competencies. Results: There was a significant difference between the scores at baseline and the mental wellbeing total and self-awareness scores of the offender individuals after the ActiveGames4Change intervention who had been exposed to the ActiveGames4Change program. The results, based on a two-tailed test, support the conclusion that the intervention had a significant impact on performance scores (from 1 to 3), which were collected from the educators across the nine assessed time points. Conclusion: This research has demonstrated that active games can play a particular and deliberate role not only in physical activity but also in developing social-emotional competencies in young individuals in probation settings in the justice system. Trial registration: This trial is retrospectively registered online at ClinicalTrials.gov with the identifier NCT06737744. Highlights: The ActiveGamesforChange Program is an effective method for helping young adults with substance use problems under probation sentence in terms of supporting wellbeing and social-emotional competencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concerning rates of acquired brain injury (ABI) among adults and young people involved in the criminal justice system raise questions about support needs and issues that they face within, and at the juncture between, community-based service systems and criminal justice systems. Data from two studies in Victoria Australia, between 2015 and 2021, highlight key issues that experienced professionals identify as contributors to the repeated cycling through the criminal justice system of people living with an ABI. Systemic issues including poor ABI-literacy; failure to identify, assess or diagnose an ABI (especially among young people); insufficient specialist ABI services; inadequate care coordination and holistic, ongoing community support; and poor integration and information-sharing between custodial and community-based services lead to inappropriate and indifferent responses and attitudes. Our findings, discussion and recommendations provide insights to assist justice and allied health professionals, and to policymakers to thwart patterns of entrenchment in the criminal justice system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As youth engage in behaviors that have been designated delinquent and criminal, there is a need to provide them discipline without requiring them to become justice-involved. In Connecticut, Juvenile Review Boards (JRBs) use restorative practices integrated into front-end diversions to create an opportunity for service providers to relationally serve youth, their families, and the broader community. This study shares findings from focus groups inductively reviewed for themes. Emphasizing thoughtful strategies, the participants detailed their journey to prevent youth from unnecessary system contact and provide the appropriate level of services to address any unmet needs that prompted the discouraged behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young people who engage in sexually abusive behaviour account for a substantial number of sexual offences worldwide. Despite this, a limited body of work has explored the optimal pathways into treatment for these young people. This is an important question to explore given the iatrogenic effects of receiving treatment following incarceration and burgeoning legislative frameworks focusing on the diversion of youth who sexually offend. In Victoria, Australia, Therapeutic Treatment Orders were introduced to mandate young people with sexually abusive behaviours to community-based treatment without undergoing formal criminal justice processes. It is possible this unique treatment pathway helps overcome several limitations associated with traditional pathways. This article reviews existing research on pathways to treatment for young people who engage in sexually abusive behaviour before detailing Therapeutic Treatment Orders, and the role they may play in unionising criminal justice and diversion treatment frameworks. Considerations for future research are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth justice in England and Wales has seen the increasing adoption of desistance thinking in recent years. There has been scarce academic debate of this development, despite the desistance evidence base focussing on adult pathways away from crime. This article examines the theorisation and application of desistance thinking with children, centring on the experiences and narratives of four 'groups' involved in the formal youth justice system in England and Wales, across two empirical studies. It challenges previous scholarship that denies the relevance of desistance theories to under-18s, arguing for progressive desistance practice that prioritises children's healthy long-term development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact from the police to advise a parent that their child has come into conflict with the law can be devastating. Of the 904 individuals formally referred to youth justice services in Northern Ireland during 2020–21, one-quarter were reoffences. Most will involve boys’ aged 15 plus years with numbers reflecting the wider UK prevalence. Whilst “violent” offences account for the majority, typically this means minor assaults. Distressing as this is, for a small number of parents this marks the beginning or continuation of justice system involvement with their child, especially when younger at first involvement. Diversionary and court-ordered referrals represent the majority and in almost all cases parents/a parent will have a role in such required processes. Parents may also need to navigate separate agencies within the justice system depending on the seriousness of their child’s offending. Additionally, many will deal with their child’s ongoing challenges and needs, navigating a range of other services whilst potentially coping with multiple disadvantages and exclusions. This paper first considers the context, and circumstances of such parents. Next, it analyses key findings from a narrative review of the available international literature on parents’ experiences at critical points and during key processes of their child’s involvement with youth justice systems. Evidence indicates a unique stigma is attached to their experience. Parents feel shamed and responsible whilst having to cope with traumas, stresses and isolation in their role. Opportunities for peer-led support and peer advocacy are beneficial and offer hope and unique support where this is available. Further research that includes parents is required to better understand their needs at each stage of justice system involvement, and to provide opportunities for meaningful participation in upholding rights and supporting them in putting their children first. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In jurisdictions such as Queensland, where the minimum age of criminal responsibility (i.e., 10 years of age) is out of step with international law and Australian human rights obligations, there are significant concerns about the criminalisation of children. These concerns include the potential for ensnaring young people, particularly First Nations children, into the criminal justice system rather than addressing their underlying needs. We use a birth cohort of individuals registered as born in Queensland in 1990 and followed up to age 24 years to examine the characteristics of young people who experienced their first youth justice system contact between ages 10 and 16 years. First Nations youth were significantly overrepresented among those with the earliest ages of contact (i.e., 10–13 years). Early youth justice contact was largely for minor and less serious forms of offending (i.e., property-related), but those with the earliest ages of onset typically went on to experience more persistent and serious offending outcomes up to age 24 years. Raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility alongside the implementation of culturally relevant early intervention, diversion and support services is likely to significantly reduce the overrepresentation of First Nations people in the criminal justice system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the policy debate in Queensland on raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR). The age currently remains at 10, despite reform in other Australian jurisdictions and recommendations to the contrary in a 2018 report from a highly regarded former Police Commissioner. In 2021, a parliamentary committee reviewed a private member's Bill on the MACR and received 74 public submissions from over 300 individuals, all supporting raising the age. Despite this, the Bill was defeated. This paper reports on a content analysis and reflexive thematic analysis of those submissions to understand (a) the views of a broad range of Queensland organisations and individuals about the MACR and (b) their rationales for supporting raising the age. We found 13 such rationales, with a particular focus on the need for more extensive, appropriate and better integrated services for vulnerable children rather than punitive criminal justice responses, and a concern for worsening impacts on First Nations young people. These findings illustrate community support for both raising the MACR and adopting more evidence-based approaches to youth justice, accompanied by improved approaches to service support. We also briefly consider the counter-arguments against raising the MACR advanced in the Committee's report. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Australia, as elsewhere, there is consensus that new and more effective ways of responding to young people who commit crimes need to be identified and, when available, implemented and evaluated. In this paper we review youth justice legislation across each Australian jurisdiction and consider how it provides the mandate for service delivery. We contextualise this with an account of historical variations in how the seemingly competing goals of welfare and justice have been balanced. This is followed by an overview of contemporary understandings of child development and human rights which are increasingly recognised as both relevant and important to the way in which the community works with justice-involved children and young people. The analysis illustrates how youth justice agencies are still expected to achieve multiple and, at times, conflicting legislated objectives which results in a lack of coherence in policy and practice. This serves only to limit effectiveness. We conclude that legislative reform will be necessary to realise any new vision for youth justice, especially if one of the overarching purposes is to protect vulnerable children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the history of the reforms in Scotland which led up to the raising of the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR) in 2019, from age 8 to 12. It also showcases research evidence, from the Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime, which indicates that there is both an ethical and empirical case for raising the MACR further, to at least 15. As we will argue, the Scottish experience demonstrates the dangers for governments of deploying punitive narratives around youth crime as a means of building political capacity. While progressive policy transformations, aimed at avoiding the criminalisation of children, have been hard won, fears that such practices are 'soft options' that will drive up youth offending are unfounded. Edinburgh Study findings demonstrate that the lives of children involved in serious offending are blighted by poverty and early trauma: factors beyond their capacity to control. They also demonstrate that diversionary and holistic approaches to dealing with children's needs are associated with reductions in offending. Consequently, whilst the Scottish experience should give confidence to policy-makers about the positive impact that raising the MACR brings, we conclude that this is only a minimum necessary step in delivering justice for children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For young people, a first encounter with criminal justice can have lasting effects. While perceptions of equitable treatment can generate feelings of belongingness and acceptance, treatment perceived as unfair or prejudicial can generate experiences of dissonance and exclusion. However, little research has examined young people's appraisals of justice system encounters. The purpose of the study was to examine perceptions of criminal justice among young people suspected of a first, non-serious offence. Using an intensive longitudinal design, young people suspected of criminal activity (n = 21) were interviewed during a justice process. Using subjective procedural justice as an analytical framework, a theory-driven thematic analysis was conducted. Results revealed how the actions of crime-prevention professionals were mostly appraised as proportionate and beneficially intended. However, some participants reported negative encounters and lacking opportunities for agency. Findings are evaluated in relation to the long-term consequences of a first encounter with criminal justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criminological imagination requires that criminologists adopt multiple perspectives on their study subjects, shifting backwards and forwards between the personal and remote, the micro and the macro, or the theoretical and the empirical. Criminology should thus be ‘refractive’ (Frauley 2015: 21), harnessing the multi-perspectivism of social life to produce fuller, sharper analyses that reveal links between individual lives, social structures, and historical context. One such perspective is fa’a Sāmoa criminology. Not much is known about this worldview or its relationship with criminology, let alone its application as a credible epistemology. This article argues that Western criminology is not the only way to generate new knowledge and recommended solutions and that instead fa’a Sāmoa criminology offers an alternative way. Two qualitative case studies demonstrate how Sāmoan thinking and doing applies in the contexts of Sāmoan young people’s interaction with the youth justice system and hard-to-reach gang-involved Sāmoan peoples. Key implications are highlighted and recommended.

In order to contribute to research into youth crime prevention, the current study aimed to explore the experiences of children in conflict with the law prior to receiving their first caution or conviction. Participants were recruited at a Youth Justice Service and included five children working with the service, their five case managers, and two of their parents/guardians. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and timelines were used to support the children in sharing their experiences. Data was analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, which focuses on understanding how individuals experience the world and how they make sense of those experiences. Six group experiential themes were identified within the analysis. These consider the events leading up to offending and whether it could have been predicted, the extent to which the children felt supported, the effect of school practices, the impact of peer influences, difficulties with managing emotions, and the children's readiness for change. Each theme is discussed and recommendations for practice and future research are considered. The importance of placing children's experiences at the forefront of research is highlighted throughout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

\nPractice implicationsIn this ethico-onto-epistemological perspective, hauntology serves as a prism through which to scrutinize the confluence of youth justice and residential care environments. The narrative unfolds across three sections. Initially, an exploration of hauntology’s interpretative potential within youth justice, specifically focusing on dually-involved youth, is undertaken. Subsequently, posthumanist inquiries are engaged, using hauntological perspectives – particularly drawing on Karen Barad’s theoretical frameworks – to reframe perspectives through empirical examination. Finally, succinct prognostications are presented concerning the future trajectory of youth justice, proposing pathways for fortifying frameworks pertinent to dually-involved youth. Throughout the narrative, the central idea is that hauntology-based perspectives offer not a panacea, but rather an avenue for residential care professionals to recalibrate their perspectives, empowering them with the understanding to confront prevailing challenges. While acknowledging the extant inclusivity within youth justice frameworks, a hauntological lens presents an opportunity to elevate discourse to a more interconnected level.Hauntology as interpretative tool: The piece advocates for the application of hauntology as a tool in interpreting youth justice, particularly concerning dually-involved youth. By using hauntology as a lens, it offers an understanding of the historical and situational factors shaping the emergence of dually-involved youth.Enhanced practicality through posthumanist perspectives: Probing into posthumanist perspectives, inspired by Karen Barad’s theories, prompts practitioners to reframe their outlooks through a pragmatic lens. This entails adopting an ontoepistemic perspective to discern pertinent factors influencing the emergence of dually-involved youth and their interconnectedness.Advancing contextualized care in youth justice: The conclusion provides future projections for youth justice, emphasizing the need to enhance contextualized care approaches. Existing strategies lack inclusivity, highlighting the importance of tailoring reintegration strategies to cultural and familial contexts. Acknowledging the efficacy of such approaches hinges on their alignment with cultural preferences and familial dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Justice Reinvestment aims to prevent young people coming into contact with the criminal justice system through place‐based, data‐driven and evidence‐based community solutions developed through community‐based leadership and partnerships. The initiative also advocates for strategic changes to the justice system, with any savings reinvested into successful community programs. This paper will discuss the historical, international and local perspectives of Justice Reinvestment, recent Commonwealth funding opportunities, and how well these initiatives work for young people in New South Wales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Findings of high rates of complex trauma among justice-involved young people have engendered interest in developing trauma-informed youth justice systems. Although there have been several reviews of trauma-informed practice in youth justice settings, uncertainty remains about whether this approach can produce the outcomes expected of youth justice services. In this study we summarize findings from recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses to provide an overview of evidence relevant to implementing trauma-informed youth justice. We conducted an umbrella review of systematic reviews published between 2017 and 2023 that included group-based primary studies of trauma-informed interventions for justice-involved young people. Reviews were located via searches of PsycINFO, PubMedCentral, Embase, Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text, and ProQuest. Data extracted from each review included the number and type of primary studies reviewed, and outcomes related to trauma symptomatology, mental health and wellbeing, and justice system involvement. Nine systematic reviews met our inclusion criteria. Improvements in trauma symptoms, mental health and wellbeing, and justice system involvement were documented in each review. The strongest evidence related to the impact of trauma-focused interventions on posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, but less evidence was available to demonstrate outcomes of organizational level and systemic components of trauma-informed practice. Each review highlighted the need to strengthen the methodological quality of primary studies. Trauma-informed practice should be seriously considered as part of any effort to implement evidence-based youth justice. This should extend beyond treatment of trauma symptomatology to incorporate a broader approach to trauma-informed practice that is organizationally embedded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As criminological perspectives of youth justice shift from rehabilitative ideals to desistance frameworks whereby young people assume a central role in their own identity-development and relationships with others, child-centred approaches that afford youth with agency and voice have been seen as increasingly important. However, noting that desistance is not only a process of identity (re)construction but a relational one in which individuals establish a sense of belonging, who young people engage with have a significant impact on their desistance journeys. The research reported in this article examined how musicians conceptualise their aims and practices in youth detention centres in relation to the desistance journeys of incarcerated youth in Australia. Findings illustrate music's affordances for desistance as spaces of asylum for young people, providing respite from carceral pains, opportunities for agential creativity and enjoyment, but also political and disruptive potentials to resist the inequities and injustices of the status quo and create alternative futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criminological imagination requires that criminologists adopt multiple perspectives on their study subjects, shifting backwards and forwards between the personal and remote, the micro and the macro, or the theoretical and the empirical. Criminology should thus be 'refractive' (Frauley 2015: 21), harnessing the multi-perspectivism of social life to produce fuller, sharper analyses that reveal links between individual lives, social structures, and historical context. One such perspective is fa'a Sāmoa criminology. Not much is known about this worldview or its relationship with criminology, let alone its application as a credible epistemology. This article argues that Western criminology is not the only way to generate new knowledge and recommended solutions and that instead fa'a Sāmoa criminology offers an alternative way. Two qualitative case studies demonstrate how Sāmoan thinking and doing applies in the contexts of Sāmoan young people's interaction with the youth justice system and hard-to-reach gang-involved Sāmoan peoples. Key implications are highlighted and recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collaboration is one of the major tenets of Child First justice and yet is proving problematic in its application across the sector, especially where children are compelled through court orders to engage with interventions, creating inevitable power imbalances. In order to facilitate children in genuinely influencing decision-making processes which concern them, their voice needs to be given its proper value. In this article we use the youth justice system of England and Wales to explore the meaning, value and presence of collaboration within youth justice whilst examining the power dynamics at play through the analytical lenses of Bronfenbrenner's ecological approach and Bourdieu's analytical tools. This lends itself to a novel conceptualisation of collaboration within the youth justice space, which is applicable to youth justice contexts internationally, distinguishing between different forms of the concept and examining how much opportunity for influence is actually given to children within their own youth justice journeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth justice commuting problems need better recognition due to the complex dispersal of practice sites and prevalence of characteristics associated with journey barriers. Applying a transport poverty framework to the youth justice population develops adult-focused research and establishes youth transport poverty for the first time. Data from 28 young people and 33 practitioners in two high-deprivation, post-industrial English towns suggests that free transport offers a partial solution. Recommendations indicate that inclusive communication and established education sector policies could support youth justice accessibility, help understand connections between over-representation and commuting problems, and support other contexts like education to employment transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'Child First' guiding principle for practice in the Youth Justice System of England and Wales has a growing international evidence-base and is fully embedded in policy/strategy, yet remains underdeveloped in consistent, coherent practice across local agencies and areas. This raises the potential for a policy–strategy practice implementation gap. Focus-group consultations (n = 11) with professional stakeholder groups (community, custody, strategy, inspectorate, and research) explored perceptions of the practice challenges to understanding, implementing and supporting Child First. Qualitative analysis identified child-centrism, professional relationships and cognisance as pivotal features of the effective realisation of Child First in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite some positive developments within policy and practice, the over-representation of care-experienced children in the youth justice system remains of significant concern globally. Moreover, there is a relative lack of research or policy focusing specifically on the needs of care-experienced girls who become involved in offending behaviour. This article presents novel findings from interviews with 17 girls and young women and eight Youth Offending Team (YOT) staff, highlighting how being in care can affect offending behaviour and how YOTs may provide support to care-experienced girls who have been inadequately supported elsewhere. Reviewing research and practice through a gendered lens helps to demonstrate how and why care-experienced girls may be escalated through justice systems at a greater rate than boys. The provision of gender-specific, trauma-informed interventions by YOTs demonstrates how focusing on care-experienced girls' well-being first is essential if their involvement in the youth justice system is to be reduced. Nonetheless, while YOTs can plug the gaps by providing valuable support within an unsatisfactory system, youth justice intervention must not be a default option for girls in care who exhibit 'challenging' behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2019, Flanders, Belgium's northern Dutch-speaking community, adopted legislation that for the first time mentions juvenile electronic monitoring. The government has nevertheless yet to decide on its implementation. Other countries' policies, that share Flanders' principles of constructive sanctioning, rehabilitation, responsibility, safety, restoration and evidence-based practices, such as England and Wales, the Netherlands, Scotland, and Sweden, can therefore inspire lesson-drawing. Juvenile electronic monitoring is advised to be applied (1) when juveniles can understand it, (2) for limited durations, (3) using global positioning system (GPS), (4) with therapeutic treatments, (5) consent, (6) incentivised schedules, (7) individualised breach procedures, (8) restorative options and (9) regular evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe delivery of high-quality case work is central to efforts to reform youth justice systems around the world. Youth justice practitioners can be the most effective agents of change when the focus of their casework practice is on listening to justice-involved young people, helping them to feel safe and to avoid re-traumatization, and working in ways that promote positive childhood experiences. It is argued that developing ‘practice-based evidence’ in this way can help to unite the field, to close the policy implementation gap, and simultaneously contribute to the personal wellbeing of young people and the broader agenda of public safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, children in conflict with the law are entitled to dignity and respect for their rights within a youth justice system adapted to their age and circumstances. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognises the necessity of ensuring that children's rights are protected during the criminal process, emphasising the importance of legal advice, information and support to enable their participation in the process. Police questioning can be a particularly difficult experience for children, given their vulnerability and immaturity and yet it can have very serious consequences for children. This article examines the rights of the child during police questioning, from the perspective of children themselves. Presenting the findings of a study of children's experiences of their rights when being questioned by the police (An Garda Síochána) in Ireland, the article highlights the need to adapt police questioning processes to the needs and circumstances of the child, while emphasising the powerful case for greater involvement of children in research about criminal justice and policing so that their experiences of their rights can be better understood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research suggests that diverting young people away from the criminal justice system and into mental health services can reduce subsequent reoffending, but the impact of such programs on the rates of timely mental health service contact are largely unknown. In this study, we examined a sample of 523 young people who were deemed eligible for mental health diversion between 2008 and 2015. Around half (47%) of these young people were granted diversion by a Magistrate. Overall, the levels of timely mental health service contact after court finalization, even for those who were granted diversion, appeared low given that the purpose of diversion is to facilitate such contact for all those diverted. Specifically, only 22% of those who were granted community-based diversion and 62% of individuals granted inpatient-based diversion had mental health service contact within 7 days of court finalization. Rates of health contact were much lower for those who were not granted either type of diversion (8% and 23%, respectively). Diversion was associated with a significant reduction in reoffending rates, but the impact of early mental health service contact was less clear. There is a need to understand the reasons why many young people are not accessing appropriate mental health services following diversion in order to improve outcomes and fully realize the intended benefits of mental health court diversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the perspectives of justice-involved children regarding the obstacles to accessing higher education (HE). It outlines the regulatory approach of the Office for Students (OfS) aimed at ensuring the sector aids disadvantaged children in 'raising attainment' through outreach activities to enhance the equality of opportunity. The analysis incorporates both desistance theory and ecological systems theory to understand children's viewpoints on how being outside mainstream education affects their transition from specialised programs to further learning beyond secondary school. This approach is anchored in the 'Child-First' principle, a core aspect of the Youth Justice Board's strategic plan for 2021–2024, emphasising the importance of children's voices in efforts to divert them from the youth justice system, thereby reducing victimisation and fostering safer communities. The findings indicate that justice-involved children not in mainstream education who have supportive micro- and mesosystems are more likely to develop an identity aligned with continuing education post secondary school, through positive encouragement and relational environments that promote educational pathways. Thus, higher education can contribute to raising attainment for justice-involved children not in mainstream education by focusing on the broader ecological system surrounding the child, which can encourage a pro-social and pro-educational identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This reflective piece considers the author’s formative professional experiences including working in the criminal justice system in Central Australia, and conducting humanitarian monitoring of immigration detention centers across Australia, both environments where the human rights of those impacted were constrained through the domestic legal frameworks. By utilizing these experiences to illustrate the strength of embracing a human rights-based approach within social work in Australia, the author emphasizes that this approach is broader than the construct of domestic legality alone. Having recently completed her doctoral thesis exploring the lived experiences of youth detention in New South Wales, the author describes how she frames her emerging social work teaching practice through using her professional background, incorporating case studies, and facilitating discussions in a dynamic, flipped classroom. The author emphasizes in her teaching that social workers are positioned as human rights-focused practitioners, noting that the law, not infrequently, contravenes basic human rights standards, or is not enforced with an overarching human rights-based ethos or approach. Ethical and reflective human rights-focused social work practice in Australia is vital within this country marred by deepening inequalities and the on-going destructive processes of colonization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young people that offend evidence higher rates of trauma and post-traumatic distress than non-offending peers. Effects of post-traumatic distress also parallel research on some young people that participate in restorative justice (RJ) meetings who struggle with communication, emotionally withdraw, become agitated or defiant, evidence poor understanding of harms they have caused, or fail to demonstrate empathy or remorse. In this paper I suggest post-traumatic distress may explain some variation in RJ process and outcomes hitherto ignored in existing research. I also suggest research on trauma in young people raises four areas of concern for thinking about RJ as a "trauma-informed" practice, including impacts of trauma and post-traumatic distress on (1) oral language proficiency and non-verbal communication; (2) the experience and expression of emotions; (3) offender perceptions of fairness and respect; and (4) difficulties in behavioural changes following participation in RJ meetings. I conclude with discussion of challenges to and suggestions for using RJ as a trauma-informed practice in youth justice settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Adolescents involved in criminal proceedings are significantly more likely to re-offend than a similar population diverted away from criminal justice. Adolescents who use substances and offend are at higher risk of experiencing negative social, psychological and physical problems that often persist into adulthood. There is some evidence that brief interventions combined with appropriate psychoeducation may be effective in reducing adolescent substance use. Methods Prospective two-armed, individually randomized internal pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) with follow-up at 6 months. Young people across three police forces—Kent, Cornwall and Sefton—arrested in possession of class B or C illicit substances were randomly allocated to receive the ReFrame intervention or business as usual. In total, 102 participants were eligible of whom 76 consented and 73 were followed up at 6 months. Outcomes addressed offending behaviour, frequency of substance use, wellbeing and mental health. The study was conducted between February and December 2022. Results All progression criteria were met, 80% of those eligible consented, 96% adhered to their allocated treatment and 88% were followed up at the primary endpoint. Conclusions The feasibility of conducting the pilot trial was a success and it will now proceed to a definitive RCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPurposeMethodResultConclusionThe aims of this project were to explore how youth justice staff perceive the speech-language pathology role and provision in an Australian youth justice setting, including the speech-language pathologist’s role in supporting young people to participate in the activities of the youth justice service studied.A narrative inquiry approach was employed to guide semi-structured interviews with youth justice staff. Perceptions and experiences were analysed via reflexive thematic analysis, with member checking and inter-rater coding utilised for rigour.Seven semi-structured interviews were conducted. Interviewees worked in either the custodial setting (n = 3) or the community setting (n = 4) for the youth justice service studied, though most had worked in both settings. Six themes and six subthemes were identified from the interview data and related to factors that supported improved participation in the activities of the youth justice service studied. These factors were the speech-language pathology skillset and approach, and that there were systemic barriers within the service. All participants perceived speech-language pathology input as valuable for the young people in the service studied. There was also acknowledgement by the participants of how speech, language, and communication needs of the young people impacted their participation in the activities of the service studied. These findings were despite the perceived need for organisation-wide education on the speech-language pathologist role and offering.Increased understanding of how youth justice staff perceive the role and benefits of speech-language pathology in supporting young people in contact with the youth justice system will assist with service planning, inform education strategies, and may support policy change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing body of research shows that justice-involved children, particularly those in conflict with the law, present with symptoms of a diagnosable mental disorder. Routine screening and assessment of young offenders assists justice actors in determining the most appropriate treatment interventions, ensures effective rehabilitation, and enhances public safety. Conversely, some child-justice jurisdictions such as Kenya have not integrated mental health screening for children entering the justice system. This lack of internal audit mechanisms by agencies can contribute to worsening of the young person's mental status. This study sought to determine the mental health needs of 153 children in conflict with the law committed by courts to remand homes, reception centers, rehabilitation schools, Borstal institutions, youth corrective centers, probation hostels, and on community probation supervision in Nairobi country. Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument Version-2 was used to screen the children. The findings revealed that thought disturbance in boys was the highest endorsed scale as 58.9% were within warning range scores. Clinically significant caution level scores were reported for somatic complaints (66.7%), angry-irritable (54.2%), and depressed-anxious (45.1%). There were statistically significant gender differences in somatic complaints (p = 0.021), suicidal ideation (p < 0.001) and traumatic experiences (p = 0.034). Respondents with a history of offending had higher mean scores in alcohol/drug use (M = 2.92, SD = 2.36). Significant differences were found between the institution where the child was screened and alcohol/drug use. The findings of this study could assist the Kenyan child justice system to institute mechanisms for mandatory mental health screening, assessment, and treatment of young offenders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few studies have examined the prevalence of mental illness in young people over time within the same jurisdiction. In the current study, we compared data from three large surveys of youth in custody in New South Wales, conducted in 2003, 2009 and 2015. We examined rates of mental illness, self-harm and suicidal behaviours, substance use and childhood trauma and found little consistent change over time, though some fluctuations were observed regarding certain mental illnesses and substance use. We also descriptively compared findings with observed rates for the general population and found that young people in custody showed higher levels of all examined variables. In sum, these data suggest little improvement in the well-being of young people in custody in New South Wales over time. Better identification and treatment of these issues are vital if young people are to be prevented from becoming enmeshed in the criminal justice system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the early 2000s, Turkey's youth justice system has undergone extensive reforms. However, it is centred around high-security remand imprisonment. Based on the research conducted between 2014 and 2015 to comprehend how high-security remand imprisonment has acquired such a central role, this article provides an analysis on the ways in which the system has diverted into a peculiar 'managerialism'. Certain themes emerged revealing the turn to 'managerialism': (1) lack of coordination between different professional units and lack of evidence-based policymaking, (2) prioritization of speed and technology, (3) peripheral role of social work officials and (4) the importance of prisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Child First Participation agenda in England marks a paradigm shift in youth justice. This solidifies a commitment to democratising decision-making processes with children. Drawing on interviews with children and professionals, this article explores the enablers and constraints to Child First participation in youth justice services, including how risk-oriented practices, managerialism and neo-liberal mechanisms constrain positive relationships with children. In this article, Bourdieu's concept of 'symbolic violence' is used to explore systemic problems when engaging children in co-producing youth justice interventions. The article suggests how participatory practices can provide freedom from symbolic violence for both children and practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2018, the National Protocol on Reducing Unnecessary Criminalisation of Looked-after Children and Care Leavers was published in England. The protocol represented national recognition of the issue and called for local authorities to implement their own agreements. However, the protocol was given no statutory status, which immediately raised questions about its potential impact. Drawing on analysis of 36 local protocols from across England and Wales, this article explores the challenges and possibilities of using local agreements to divert children in care and care leavers away from formal justice systems contact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are much more likely to be arrested, charged with criminal offences and imprisoned than other Australians. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders comprise 49% of young people in detention but only 5.8% of the Australian population aged 10–17. This study investigated changes between 1997 and 2019 in the interaction of Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal young people with the justice system in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia. The prevalence of young people being charged with an alleged offence decreased by more than 60% between 1999 and 2001, co‐incident with the introduction of the Juvenile Diversion Scheme in August 2000. Thereafter, for non‐Aboriginal young people there was a small and temporary increase, but for Aboriginal young people prevalence increased almost back to pre‐2000 levels by 2015 before starting to decrease. Aboriginal young people comprised 57% of those charged with any offence in 1997, rising to 88% in 2019. Further investigation is needed to understand the reasons for divergent trends in the prevalence of alleged offending for Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal young people, which may include the role of diversion, differences in the nature of offences and systemic bias and racism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2021, China amended its law on the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR), lowering the MACR of two specified offences to twelve years. As a result, China now has three different levels of MACR for different offences. Based on the position in China, this article argues that while lowering the MACR against the international trend can be justified as a necessary measure to tackle serious crimes committed by children, creating different levels of MACR based on the types of crime is wrong in principle. This article further considers the classic dilemma in setting an absolute MACR, which results in either freeing the guilty or convicting the innocent. It is argued that setting a relatively low MACR accompanied by robust safeguards of doli incapax, child immaturity defence, diversion and wider sentencing options would allow a better assessment of children's culpability and better serve the interests of justice. It is also suggested that lowering the MACR will not unjustifiably undermine children's rights if the juvenile justice system could ensure only those truly culpable could be convicted and that the option of prosecution is reserved as a last resort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young people who have both child protection and youth justice contact have been termed ‘dual system youth’. Dual system youth have been found to engage in more frequent and serious offending than justice-involved youth without child protection histories. It is unclear which psychological factors contribute to offending amongst dual-system youth. This study aimed to examine associations between child protection involvement, psychological/behavioural factors, and justice system involvement. The sample comprised 192 young people detained in juvenile correctional centres across two sites in Victoria, Australia between July 2011 and June 2012. Instruments were administered to gauge psychopathology and behaviour, while information regarding demographic details, child protection history, and offence data were obtained from client files. Results indicated that having a child protection history was associated with having both a violent index offence and a higher number of previous orders. Sensitivity to anger was also associated with having a violent index offence, while being male and aged 17–18 were associated with a higher number of previous orders. Child protection history moderated the relationship between Indigenous status and the number of prior orders, and between externalising symptoms and prior orders. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article advances transdisciplinarity as a potentially useful applied theatre theory and method. It maps the ways transdisciplinary research principles informed and framed an applied theatre project and suggests that making applied theatre explicit rather than implicit as a transdisciplinary research process may help practitioners conceptualise and manage projects. In our case, it also increased our ability to contribute to second-order (systemic) change. I argue that applied theatre was always-already transdisciplinary research but articulating this alignment may be helpful to both practice and analysis. The project presented here implemented applied theatre in a university-community partnership addressing youth justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a paucity of research investigating New Zealand's rates of youth offending. This study examines trends in youth offending data between 1998 and 2019, then compares these with the rate at which emerging adults (aged 17 to 24) entered the justice system during this period. Our approach aimed to explore whether changes in youth offending may have had a downstream impact on rates of justice-system contact among emerging adults. Results indicate that the overall rate at which youth were alleged to have offended (per police data) reduced by 58% between 2010 and 2018, which coincided with a significant reduction in the rates at which emerging adults were imprisoned, sentenced or remanded into custody. Additionally, the rate at which young people were formally charged in Youth Court fell by 73% between 2008 and 2018. However, the rate of decline was less for the overrepresented Indigenous Māori and minority ethnic group of Pasifika young people. Serious offending (including by minority groups) reduced at lesser rates than did less serious offending, while reoffending rates remained fairly static. International trends in reductions of youth offending are examined, and recommendations made to better manage the needs of young people at risk of serious offending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children who have 'early contact' with youth justice (YJ) are a group of significant policy interest. Understanding circumstances which precede or co-occur with YJ contact can support the development of preventive investments and inform debates about systemic reform, such as 'raise the age'. Using whole-of-population administrative data from the SA Better Evidence Better Outcomes Linked Data (BEBOLD) platform, we examine differences between children who have early (i.e. between the ages of 10 and 13 years) versus late (i.e. at age 14 or older) YJ contact, relative to the general population. Children born 1991–2022 were followed from birth to age 18 (N = 249,995). Compared to the late-contact group, children with early contact experienced more serious YJ contact (91% versus 59% experienced custody); were more disadvantaged at birth (e.g. 66% versus 45% born into jobless families); had more serious child protection contact by age 10 (26% versus 12% experienced out-of-home care); and experienced mental health-related hospitalisations from ages 12–18 (43% versus 34%). Relative to the general population, both groups were characterised by significant social and economic disadvantage, child protection contact and mental health challenges. The need for investment in early prevention to divert children from the justice system is clear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IntroductionMultiple risk and protective factors influence the wellbeing and retention of child protective and youth justice professionals. Less attention has been given to empirically understand how residential childcare workers (RCW) experience these factors. A sense of pride and of achievement may be related to competence and satisfaction, which have been identified as protective factors against staff turnover.MethodsResponses to the Secure Base Interview Protocol question “What aspects of caring for (name of child in their care) have given you the greatest sense of pride or achievement?” were extracted from individual interview transcripts from Canadian RCW and analyzed using the Interpretive Description methodology. Themes were aggregated using the thematic analysis technique to create descriptions of RCW pride and achievement.ResultsThe RCW identified many experiences of work-related pride and achievement while caring for children and youth. These positive experiences were described to occur contingent on the level of mutuality and trust in the helping relationship shared between the RCW and child or youth in their care.DiscussionThe reciprocal nature of the relationships described by RCW that gave rise to their felt sense of pride and accomplishment is a novel finding. Future work is indicated to better understand how protective factors related to RCW wellbeing may indeed be relationally constructed and dependent.