This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Expansion of youth courts
24/11/2006
The possibility of setting up three new youth courts in Kilmarnock, Paisley and Dundee is being considered as the special scheme to deal with young offenders is expanded.
Justice Minister Cathy Jamieson today confirmed that following a broadly positive evaluation of the pilot youth courts in Hamilton and Airdrie, funding will be made available for up to three new youth courts where fast-track procedures and a range of programmes offer quicker justice for perpetrators and victims and action to tackle the underlying causes of offending.
Ms Jamieson said:
"We know that crime in Scotland is falling and that our decisive action to help police and local agencies tackle antisocial behaviour across the country is also delivering safer, stronger communities.
"But re-offending rates are too high and the number of persistent young offenders has not yet fallen across Scotland.
"We are providing record investment for youth justice services - now £63 million per year - and young people's offending is now being tackled more quickly as a result of that investment and reforms in the Children's Hearings system.
"But we are also determined that for those offenders who have already, or who are on the verge of, entering the adult court system, swift and intensive action is taken quickly to progress cases and tackle the causes of offending.
"Social workers involved in the evaluation reported that most young people given supervisory disposals during the evaluation were responding well and had reduced or even ceased their offending.
"Reconviction rates were lower in Hamilton youth court than in comparable sheriff courts, despite dealing with more heavily convicted young people.
"On the strength of the success of the pilots, I have decided to provide additional resources with a view to extending the benefits of the youth courts more widely.
"Initial studies suggest that Kilmarnock, Paisley and Dundee could benefit from having a youth court. We will now be working with the Sheriff Principal and local agencies to assess the feasibility of establishing youth courts at these locations."
Youth courts operate in a standard Sheriff Court but have several distinctive features, including:
- A fast track process, meaning young offenders will normally appear in court within two weeks of charge
- A dedicated Procurator Fiscal team which allows for fast tracking of offenders and rolling up of offences, meaning offenders appearing in court with all outstanding charges against them (rather than appearing numerous times for one offence each time)
- A dedicated social work team to meet challenging deadlines of the youth court and provide specifically designed programmes
- Multi-agency steering groups that take a problem-solving approach to bring agencies together
The pilot youth courts have been running in Hamilton, since 2003, and Airdrie, since June 2004. They are targeted on alleged offenders aged 16 and 17 year olds (and appropriate 15 year olds) who are resident in North and South Lanarkshire and are appearing summarily before Airdrie or Hamilton Sheriff Courts. Cases can be considered for the youth courts where the young person's background and circumstances (including persistent offending) suggest that a referral would be appropriate to enhance community safety and reduce the risk of re-offending.
The evaluation report concluded that the Hamilton and Airdrie pilots, as far as can be assessed, have been successful in meeting the objectives set for them by the Youth Court Feasibility Group.
The objectives of the pilot youth courts are to:
- reduce the frequency and seriousness of offending by 16 and 17 year olds (and some 15 year olds) through targeted and prompt disposals with judicial supervision and continuing social work involvement
- promote the social inclusion, citizenship and personal responsibility of the young offenders while maximising their potential
- establish fast-track procedures for those young offenders appearing before the youth court; enhance community safety by reducing the harm caused to victims of crime and provide respite to those communities which are experiencing high levels of crime
- examine the viability and effectiveness of existing legislation in servicing a youth court and to identify whether legislative and other changes may be required
4. During the period covered by the evaluation, the Hamilton Youth Court had dealt with 611 cases involving 402 young people while 533 cases featuring 335 young people had been dealt with in the youth court in Airdrie. Most of those prosecuted in both courts were male, were 16 or 17 years of age and were prosecuted on a single occasion.