Vale of Glamorgan Youth Offending Service (YOS) has received an overall rating of ‘Good’ following an inspection by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said: “Stability, passion and experience – Vale of Glamorgan Youth Offending Service has these, and many other attributes, which is ensuring the right ingredients for success. Children have access to what they need to succeed and move away from further offending – this is good news for all concerned, not least the local communities in the Vale and throughout south-east Wales.”

Inspectors praised the knowledge of staff at the YOS, and their overall delivery of good-quality work that is deterring children from crime. We also found specific areas of their work to be of a high standard. This is a positive sign that a service has struck the right balance between helping children and protecting the public.

This inspection did find areas for improvement, notably that the YOS must continue to improve the quality of services available to children, which has stalled in recent months. Additionally, the report outlines a need for the service to be more consistent with how they assess and oversee each child under their supervision and fully address their safety and wellbeing.

The report makes six recommendations to Vale of Glamorgan YOS, including that they should fully implement their resettlement policy – the work which helps children return to the community after being in custody – within the next 12 months.

ENDS

 Notes to editor

 Vale of Glamorgan YOS work with children aged 10 to 17. The majority of children under their supervision are aged 15 to 17 (73%), male (81%) and white (90%). The YJS supervise children with complex needs and some in the care of the local authority.

1. The Inspectorate uses a four-point scale: ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires improvement’ and ‘Inadequate’, rating specific aspects of each service and giving an overall rating.
2. The inspection looked at standards of organisational delivery (leadership, staffing and facilities), their management of children serving court sentences (court disposals) and children serving cautions or community sentences (out-of-court disposals).
3. The report is available on the HM Inspectorate of Probation website on 16 August 2022 00.01.
4. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth offending and probation services across England and Wales.
5. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in April 2022.
6. For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications Diane Bramall media@hmiprobation.gov.uk (E-mail address)