Blackburn with Darwen Youth Justice Service rated ‘Good’

Blackburn with Darwen Youth Justice Service has been rated as ‘Good’ with ‘Outstanding’ features in their recent HM Inspectorate of Probation inspection.

The inspectors’ report praises the effectiveness of youth justice service work with adults and children.

Although the overall report rating was good, there were also many aspects that were rated as ‘Outstanding’.
These included Governance and Leadership, Staff, Assessment, Assessment Planning and Implementation and delivery.

The HM Inspectorate of Probation reports across three broad areas:

• the arrangements for organisational delivery of the service
• the quality of work done with children sentenced by the courts
• and the quality of out-of-court disposal work.

The report said:

Staff are motivated, passionate, and dedicated to meeting the needs of children, families, and victims. There is a high level of care and commitment, which extends from senior managers to operational staff.

Practitioners were skilled at engaging with children and families, and developing positive working relationships. Children and families were involved and had influence in deciding on the work to be completed and how this would be undertaken.

The work to keep children safe was exceptional. Communication between services was strong and there was an ongoing commitment to attending multi-agency meetings, sharing information and support for children.

Planning to keep other people safe was impressive. In every case, potential and future victims were considered. This included interventions to assist children in understanding the impact for victims, and external controls and measures needed to keep others safe.

Cllr Julie Gunn, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education said:

I want to say a huge thank you to the team for the outstanding work they do on a daily basis. They really have children and young people at the heart of everything that they do and make such a positive impact on their lives. Congratulations to all of the team on this fantastic outcome.

The Youth Justice Service supports children and young people who enter the YJS through the police or the courts. Their role is to then support them and help them to make changes where they are needed to hopefully avoid future contact with the justice system.

The report also said that practitioners had a strong understanding of potential adverse outcomes for children, and clearly articulated the nature, context, imminency, and impact.

Alex Orwin, Blackburn with Darwen Youth Justice Service Manager said:

I’m delighted the inspectorate recognised the passion of the team as an acknowledgement of the hard work and dedication from everyone who contributes to our service delivery. To be rated as a good service with a number of outstanding features is validation of the positive work we undertake day in day out with young people, their families and victims.

To hear more about their work watch the video below: