Skip to main content

Re-imagining Youth Justice: A Child-First Roadmap for Jersey 2025-2030 – Child-friendly version

The official version of this document can be found via the PDF button.

The below content has been automatically generated from the original PDF and some formatting may have been lost, therefore it should not be relied upon to extract citations or propose amendments.

Reimagining Youth Justice

A Child-First Roadmap for Jersey 2025 - 2030 R.106/2025

Hello This tells youtcomes we want tou about our new Yo achieve. It'outh Justice Roadmap and the 4 s about:

Prevention children and families have the right support early in life

The Government of Jersey wants all children to have the best life  so they don't get involved in anti social behaviours and crime

possible. That includes children who have been involved in crime or

connected to the youth justice system.    Response children have the right support if they offend to help

them not reoffend and to have positive outcomes in their lives

States of  Honorary

aJnedrs Iemy mCuigsrtaotmiosn  Jersey  Police PHaarilslsh  Our Vision

Police

Service We want a youth justice system that:

Royal Courts of   puts children first and works in their best interests

Jersey and the

Community  The  Youth Court helps children develop positive identities

anSdeSrvuicpepsort  youth justice system   removes barriers and creates opportunities for success

includes:  Children, Young People,   supports children to be resilient islanders who add value to their LDaewp aOrftfimceenrst  EducDaetpioanr tamnednSt kills  communities

breaks the circle of crime and stigma

Jersey Probation  Jersey Youth

and After Care Health and  Service

Care Jersey

This Roadmap is built upon a children first approach

and the  United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). It makes sure children are treated fairly

and have their rights met, no matter what they have

done.  Hover over to see.

We will make sure everyone puts children, and their rights first.

Working together to build a safer community

This Roadmap is part of the Building A Safer Community (BASC) Framework that helps services, organisations, professionals and the community work together to keep Jersey a safe place to live!

It has 2 stages

1. Prevention helping people early on to stop them getting involved in crime 2. Response dealing with crime and supporting victims, witnesses and the community

Universal  Targeted  Community  Rehabilitation prevention  intervention  development  Enforcement  Justice  and recovery

Islanders have the  Knowing where  Building strong  Investigating crimes,  Charging and  Supporting people who information, knowledge  there are risks and  communities, where people  taking action and  sentencing offenders in  have committed crime and support needed to  supporting people in  work together to belong,  charging people if they  courts, while supporting  to not reoffend and stay safe the right ways  feel safe and stop crime  have committed a crime victims and witnesses  help victims and the

at every step community recover

What prevention looks like...  What response looks like...

Jack's story. Abby's story.

"I used to be angry all the time. I didn't get why.  "I was dating Connor. Yes, he's 5 years older than me,

I started drinking with mates on weekends and  but he made me feel special when things were rough at staying out late. Mum worried, we argued and I  home. One night, he came over and stole from my mum. got angrier. I lost it at school and threw something.  After that, things at home went bad, and I ended up

It didn't hit anyone, but that was it everyone was  sofa-surfing at friends'.

worried.

Things got worse. I had no money so I started stealing, My teachers stepped in. They helped me and Mum  and Connor started paying me to store and move drugs get support. I met a peer mentor who helped me quit  for him. That's when the police caught me, and I went to drinking, and I started talking to a counsellor about  court.

why I was so stressed.

It was scary, but it made me see what was happening. Now? I've got ways to manage my anger and  I needed the help. I got to apologise to people I stole keep myself safe. Things feel a lot better." from, including Mum. Now I've got support, and I

understand that that relationship wasn't love. I'm

learning to stay safe and make better choices."

Outcome 1: How we re going to

The youth justice system  achieve this:

works together and supports  We will assess how we work  We will support community children to follow the law and  asycsrotesms tthoe s yeoeuitfht hjuesrteic aer e  phreolpjecchtsil darnedn parnodg rfaammsili  ewsh tioc h behave in positive ways ways we can improve. develop positive behaviours.

 We will make sure all children,  We will work to understand the

no matter their background, are  children who are involved in the involved, listened to and are given  criminal system to help prevent the right support. others in the future.

 We will make sure children and  We will link this Roadmap

families are connected to services  to other Government

and get the right support.  plans and policies.

  We will work with schools and the community

to raise awareness of positive behaviours, how to stay safe and follow the law.

This outcome supports the BASC pillars

Outcome 2: How we re going to

Children involved in  achieve this: We will assess existing early support and  We will make sure children crime and the criminal  oseuer oifptthioenres atoredwivaeyrts pitecoapnle i mfropmro vcer.ime, to  gmeot vteh eousut popf othret tyhoeuyt hnejuesdt itcoe

justice system are  system.

as possible with the  stWoe erhvewiclpiell scm hwailodkrerke s ntuoargene dther  ptWrraoeinfweinsilgsl i,moinnacakll ues d  shiuna rgvee t  rt ah ue m ri ag -ht  wWoer kwwill imtha hkaev seu srueptphoer ct hfoildr rtehne iwr e diverted away as early

right support fjuasmtiicliee ss yins ttehme .youth  practices training. hweealllbthe ianngd a gsseet sasfmulel hn et. alth and

informed and restorative

 We will make sure children have  We will make sure there are opportunities for

easy to understand information  children to put things right, using restorative that meets their needs. practices, if possible.

Restorative practices: This is about helping  We will explore ways to divert and  people fix things when a crime or something

support children involved in crime  bad has happened. It brings people together ahead of the Parish Hall system. to talk, listen, and find a way to make things

right. It's about saying sorry, solving problems together, and making sure everyone feels safe

 We will work to connect children

and respected.

with their communities.

This outcome supports the BASC pillars

Outcome 3:  How we re going to achieve this:

 We will make sure the youth justice system is  We will continue to look at court Children who are  focused on restoring children to a positive future and  processes to ensure they are less formal

reducing trauma. and child-friendly. This includes:

involved with serious    looking at new sentencing options

making sure courts make timely

crime or reoffend, go  JWues twicilel  msy as kte em su f ro el l eo vwe  rt yh oe n J ee wrs oe ry k Cinh gi l id nr e thn e's   YF oir us tt h   decisions so young people know what's

Framework and Youth Justice Framework so  happening within 14 days

on to achieve positive  children and young people have better outcomes.  checking how courts follow the Attorney outcomes Gtheinngesranl eGeudid t eo l ii nmepsr toov eid aenndti frye wduhc ee re  

 sWyes twemill  as su sp epsosr thso cwh itlhdere yno wuthho j ua sreti cinev olved  barriers in the Youth Justice system.

in serious crime (or re-offend) to see if there

are ways it can improve, including how they  We will check that our laws treat children make decisions and support children.  as children and protect them in the right

ways.

 We will look at how the Parish Hall

Enquiry process works to understand  We will look at how we can improve how we can improve the process  detention. We want to make sure children to support positive outcomes for  get the right support and reduce the children and their connection to our  amount of time they are isolated from community. others as a punishment.

This outcome supports the BASC pillars

Outcome 4:  How we re going to  We will work together across

achieve this: asuwpipdoer rta vnicgteimosf 'sneerevidcse.s to

Children, families,

witnesses, victims and  cWriemwinilal lr erevcieowrd w c hh ae tc ok fs f  ea nf cte er s s ao rme edoisncelo t su ernds in 1 8 communities recover  ppWroaescswtiibicllle eus. s,  ew rheesntoe rvaetri ve  and consult on a potential new approach.

and successfully move  oWpep woritllu mni atike es   stou rfee epdeboapclek   ho anv  e  We will make sure that children forward their experiences. athnedy fnaemeidlie fsrogmetsaelrl vthicee ss.upport

 We will make sure  We will make sure we engage with

professionals have the

offenders, families and and court right training.

information services to ensure we use children friendly practices.

 We will check services

are following the

Jersey Victim and  We will work with the island Witness Charter. community to encourage

restoration in communities.

 We will check victims and witnesses are

getting the right support throughout their experiences in the justice system.

This outcome supports the BASC pillars

Checking it works

We want to make sure this Roadmap is making the biggest difference  Thanks for reading this

possible, so...  For more information you can contact: BASC@gov.je

We will collect information  We will listen to the  We will make sure this is checked by about community safety  views of children  professionals including, the BASC and how we're meeting  and their families.  Coordinator and the Youth Justice people's needs.  Partnership.

Checking it like this will help us see if we're reaching our 4 outcomes and if anything needs to change as we go along.