Wolverhampton youth offenders' team attracts 'good' rating

Meanwhile provisions for children leaving custody and restorative justice set up by Wolverhampton Youth Offending Team (YOT) were separately rated as ‘outstanding’.

The team supervises programmes for children and young people in the criminal justice system, aged 10 to 17.

Following a recent inspection the team received an overall rating of good HM Inspectorate of Probation after an examination of its organisation, management of children serving court sentences and resettlement policy.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said: “Wolverhampton is a service driven by committed and dedicated staff.

"They have proven what can be achieved by a youth offending team despite the challenges of Covid-19 to continuously deliver high-quality work that not only benefits the child, but the local community.”

The report stated that 87 per cent of children under the team's supervision were aged 15 to 17; 88 per cent were male and 53 per cent white. Some had complex needs and some were in the care of Wolverhampton City Council.

Mr Russell said: “The work of Wolverhampton YOT is delivered to a high standard. The youth justice workers go over and above to meaningfully engage with children under their supervision, particularly those with complex needs.”

The report stated that the team's restorative justice unit was "particularly impressive" with efforts made to bring the child and the victim together to encourage understanding of an offence.

Mr Russell said:“We were pleased to see that this essential work was maintained alongside many other services during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Victims had access to virtual support and the children were able to complete home-based activities evidencing the creative and quick response of Wolverhampton YOT to Covid-19 restrictions.”

The report also praised the strong healthcare provisions which included a full-time forensic and clinical psychologist.

However, it stated there were limited provisions for children with special educational needs and more work was required to understand the experiences of black, Asian and minority ethnic children.

Mr Russell added: “While the range of health care services available to children under the supervision of Wolverhampton YOT was impressive, more needs to be done to effectively engage and deliver provisions to minority groups within the service.”

“We were disappointed by the lack of provisions for children with special educational needs and, although good work has been done to analyse disproportionality in the YOT, the board must develop services which will support the unique experiences of black, Asian and minority ethnic children.”

Recommendations included efforts be made to improve the quality of contingency planning when managing a child’s risk of harm to others.