Issue - meetings

To present the Youth Justice Plan for 2019/20. There is a statutory requirement to publish an annual Youth Justice Plan which must provide specified information about the local provision of youth justice services. This report summarises the Youth Justice Plan for 2019/20, with a copy of the Plan appended. The Youth Justice Plan needs to be approved by the full Council.

RECOMMENDED that the report, having been endorsed by Cabinet, be approved by Full Council.

Voting: Unanimous

REASON

Youth Offending Teams are required to publish an annual Youth Justice Plan which should be approved by the Local Authority for that Youth Offending Team and by the Youth Justice Board. Dorset Combined Youth Offending Service works across both BCP Council and Dorset Council. Indicative approval has been received from the Youth Justice Board. The draft Youth Justice Plan has been approved by the Dorset Combined Youth Offending Service Partnership Board.

The Portfolio Holder for Children and Families presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated and which appears as Appendix 'G' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

It was noted that there was a statutory requirement to publish an annual Youth Justice Plan which must provide specified information about the local provision of youth justice services. The report summarised the Youth Justice Plan for 2019/20, with a copy of the Plan appended. The Youth Justice Plan was required to be approved by the full Council.

The Portfolio Holder gave an update on key performance indicators. She also highlighted the work of the speech and language therapist, which was non statutory but of great benefit to young people, staff and the courts.

RECOMMENDED that the report, having been endorsed by Cabinet, be approved by Full Council.

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Children and Families

To consider and comment on the Youth Justice Plan prior to its submission to Cabinet and Council.

The Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services introduced the item and the Manager of the Dorset Combined Youth Offending Service (YOS) presented the Report.

The Committee was advised that the Report appended the Youth Justice Plan for 2019/2020.  There was a statutory requirement to publish an Annual Youth Justice Plan which must provide specified information about the provision of youth justice services. 

The Committee was requested to endorse the Youth Justice Plan for 2019/2020 to Cabinet to recommend to full Council.

The Committee discussed the Youth Justice Plan and comments were made, including:

·       In response to a query regarding how the YOS was managing with reductions in funding, the Committee was advised that, to increase its resilience, the YOS merged pan Dorset in 2015.  It was highlighted that the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 stipulated that the YOS must include certain staff posts, which the YOS met plus some additional posts however, overall a reduction in staff had been necessary

·       The issue of an increase in first time offenders was discussed and the Committee was advised that this was a complex area as the YOS would not normally start working with offenders until they were in the system.  The Service worked closely with the Police on individuals to improve outcomes, this included the need to sometimes use diversion tactics and the use of a restorative justice approach to enable fewer formal outcomes for low level offending. 

·       In response to a query about how BCP Council and its Councillors could help the Service, the Committee was advised by being actively involved within the local community, monitoring and reporting on problem and vulnerable children and being aware of issues such as Child Sexual Exploitation and County Lines.  The importance of an integrated approach was highlighted.

·       With regards to CAMHS, the Committee was advised that the YOS had nurses seconded to its team, which meant that access to it could be brokered quicker than if being referred by another service

·       The Committee agreed that it would be beneficial to receive an update report on the three key performance indicators every six months to enable it to monitor YOS’ progress

·       The work of the Speech and Language Therapist was highlighted, and it was noted how beneficial this addition to the team had been.  Work was being undertaken with the local Justice system, how the Police and court settings communicate with youth offenders and to give understanding and insight into the possible reasons for the youth offenders behaviour in the different settings

·       In response to a query regarding the quarterly finance reports and providing value for money, the Committee was advised that the YOS’ aim was to ensure it uses its budget effectively to ensure improvements were being seen in the young people it dealt with as opposed to achieving a balanced budget

·       It was noted that a few issues had been identified within the report writing which could be rectified to make it easier to understand.

The Corporate Director for Children’s Services concluded by thanking  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8