Westminster Youth Justice Service (YJS) has received an overall rating of ‘Good’ following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.

Chief Inspector of Probation Martin Jones said: “Westminster YJS can be justifiably satisfied with their work, and I hope they celebrate our positive findings, especially in such a challenging environment. The YJS’s approach to community engagement and addressing disproportionality is particularly strong.”

Inspectors were impressed with the partnership services available for children at Westminster YJS. Services were personalised, and the health offer was found to be a particular strength, with every child being offered a screening by an adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) clinician. Other local strategic partnerships demonstrated an understanding of the YJS children’s diverse needs and effectively directed resources to meet them.

Staff from across the partnership sought feedback from children, parents and carers, and actively used their opinions to improve service delivery, with testimonies being presented at management board meetings.

The report found planning to keep others safe to be variable, with some practitioners not sufficiently considering all the needs of actual and potential victims. In addition, information obtained from public protection agencies was not always used effectively to inform plans to minimise the risk of potential harm to others.

Mr Jones added “Staff at all levels should take credit for the positive aspects of service delivery we found in this inspection, and we trust that our findings in the report will assist Westminster YJS to improve further.”

The report makes a total of four recommendations. Two recommendations are for Westminster YJS, including to ensure robust contingency plans are in place for all children to address their safety, wellbeing, and risk of harm to others. The report also directs one recommendation to the YCPP management board and Probation Service, with a further recommendation to the YCPP board and Metropolitan Police.

ENDS

Notes to editor

1. This service works with children aged 10 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).
4. The report is available on the HM Inspectorate of Probation website on 17 September 2024 at 00.01.
5. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth justice and probation services across England and Wales.
6. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in April 2024.
7. For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications media@hmiprobation.gov.uk (E-mail address)