This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
Listen
Children's Hearings report
16/12/2003
More work is needed to speed up the Children's Hearings
system and improvements will be driven forward, Ministers
said today.
An annual report on how quickly children are dealt with
by the system shows the main players involved in the
Hearings system - including the police, councils and the
Scottish Children's Reporters Administration (SCRA) - have
made some improvements.
But it confirms a recent Audit Scotland report covering
a similar period which found that delays in the youth
justice system and gaps in data existed.
Commenting on the report, Minister for Young People
Peter Peacock said:
"All children who go through the Hearings system need to
be dealt with as speedily as possible. Those who are at
risk need protection fast and those who offend must have
their behaviour tackled quickly.
"This report, like the Audit Scotland report, shows
the system is still too slow and inconsistent. All
agencies must work in partnership with us to drive the
changes necessary. I want to see improvements in next
year's report and our partners have agreed to focus on this
necessary improvement.
"We know improvements can be made when the focus is on
delivery - the Principal Reporter at SCRA has reported the
pilot fast-track hearings are dealing with children in
under two months. This shows improvement is achievable and
within reach when everyone focuses on the improvements
needed.
"From now on we will be bringing together the key
agencies on a quarterly basis to ensure there is a
continuous emphasis on delivering swift and effective
action. Our investment in a national database at SCRA will
provide better data to inform these decisions."
Minister for Justice Cathy Jamieson said:
"These findings remind all of us involved in the youth
justice system that much more needs to be done before we
can say that every young person, in every area of Scotland
is receiving the services they require when they require
them.
"As with last month's Audit Scotland report on youth
offending, the picture painted is an improving one but also
a patchy one. We have national standards which everyone
should meet by 2006. Scotland's youth justice
system needs to be consistent to be effective.
"The Executive is leading the drive to improve standards
and deliver better services - on time, every time.
Vulnerable children, families and communities are entitled
to a high quality service and I will following up on these
issues with our partner agencies.
"For example, I am meeting with council leaders and
chief executives today to discuss how best to raise our
collective game and deliver a safer, stronger
Scotland."
The Children's Hearings system has had time intervals
standards since 1 April 1999. There are fifteen standards
in total which cover every stage of action by every agency
from the police, through the Scottish Children's Reporter
Administration (SCRA) to local authorities. Taken together
they show how quickly effective action has been taken
overall.
The following developments have been introduced by the
Executive in the last year to assist child protection or
youth justice work in the Hearings system:
* £7.8 million for implementation of the Youth Crime
Action Plan, including funds for local authority assessment
and IT procedures.
* £11 million for the Youth Crime Prevention Fund and
£9 million for the Intensive Support Fund to assist
implementation of Hearings decisions.
* New national standards for youth justice services
and the development of national standards for child
protection work.
* Pilot Fast Track Hearings to deal with persistent
offenders quicker.
The time intervals report can be accessed via the
following link:
www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/education/chti03.asp