York Youth Justice Service (YJS) has received an overall rating of ‘Outstanding’ – the highest rating possible – following an inspection by HM Inspectorate of Probation.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said: “York YJS is a credit to the city – innovative, committed and unrelenting in their support for children, their families, and victims. They are consistently achieving a high level of service for children under their supervision, and this means the chances of the reoffending are reduced and the public are better protected from crime.”

The inspection found York YJS has a range of services which they can offer to children under their supervision, including access to speech and language assessments to determine the needs of each child. In addition, the report commends their work with children who need safe accommodation, after they are released from custody – known as resettlement – and this was separately rated as ‘Outstanding’.

Inspectors reported an impressive and skilled workforce at the service. Of note was their ability to balance the safety and wellbeing of children with reducing the risk of harm they may pose. This was particularly evident in their work to address harmful sexual behaviour.

The report makes two recommendations to York YJS, including that they should improve the resources they have available for children to access education, training and employment opportunities.

ENDS

Notes to editor

1. York YJS works with children aged 10 to 17. The majority of children under their supervision are aged 15 to 17. The YJS supervise children with complex needs and some in the care of the local authority.
2. The Inspectorate uses a four-point scale: ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires improvement’ and ‘Inadequate’, rating specific aspects of each service and giving an overall rating.
3. 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). It also rated the quality of resettlement work as ‘Outstanding’.
4. The report is available on the HM Inspectorate of Probation website on 14 December 2022 00.01.
5. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth offending and probation services across England and Wales.
6. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in September 2022.

For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications Diane Bramall media@hmiprobation.gov.uk (E-mail address)