Recommendations & Conclusions
25 items
2
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry and HMPPS do not have a coherent strategy for improving outcomes for children in custody or to meet the expected increase in demand for places. The number of children in custody is expected to more than double by 2024 and there is a risk that the Ministry and …
Government response. The government agrees to drive and deliver improvements across the youth justice system, including early intervention and custody improvements. It announced investment in early intervention and community-based support, including a 9.8% uplift in funding to Youth Offending Teams and a …
HM Treasury
3
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
We are concerned that too many children are being held many miles away from home. The number of children in custody has reduced by 73% in the decade to 2021–22 (from 2,040 to 560 children), and we acknowledge that it is very hard to offer enough local provision with such …
Government response. The government asserts that the youth estate has sufficient capacity, and the YCS placement guidance already considers placing children in the most appropriate establishment, considering proximity to home where possible.
HM Treasury
4
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The first secure school has not yet opened, more than six years after it was recommended, and costs have spiralled. Originally HMPPS planned for the secure school to open by autumn 2020, but it now aims to open the first secure school at the former Medway STC site in November …
Government response. The government will provide an update on progress against the timetable for opening the first secure school in January 2023, noting that the full business case has been approved and governance structures are in place to keep the project on …
HM Treasury
5
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry and HMPPS are relying on a provider to deliver the new secure school model, but the approach they are taking is untested and there are insufficient safeguards in place. The Ministry and HMPPS appointed a provider, Oasis Charitable Trust (Oasis), in July 2019 although Oasis has not previously …
Government response. The government will use a Funding Agreement package, including handbooks and a 'ladders of intervention' approach, to incentivise the secure school provider to deliver high-quality care. The school will be subject to independent monitoring and Ofsted regulation, and clauses in …
HM Treasury
6
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry and HMPPS do not know what works in terms of early intervention and custodial provision for children. The Ministry wants to focus on intervening earlier to deliver better outcomes for children. But it does not yet understand the most effective ways to divert children away from entering the …
Government response. The government will review the model of care for the Keppel Unit and develop an evaluation strategy for secure schools. This includes a process evaluation of the implementation and delivery of the secure school, as well as determining options for …
HM Treasury
1
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Acknowledged
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Audit General, we took evidence from the Ministry for Justice (the Ministry) and Her Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS) about current youth custody provision in England and Wales, as well as their strategy for improving the options available for …
Government response. The government acknowledges the importance of recording protected characteristic information and describes the Youth Custody Service's D&I workstream.
HM Treasury
7
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
We asked the Ministry and HMPPS why it has been unsuccessful in responding to poor performing STCs and how it has looked after children’s needs following STC closures.13 They acknowledged the significant challenges with STC performance, which they described as a mixed picture prior to 2017.14 They told us that …
Government response. The government agrees to monitor and measure whether it is meeting the diverse needs of vulnerable children in its estate, including girls, children with disabilities and special educational needs, and children with other protected characteristics, through the Youth Custody Service …
HM Treasury
8
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry and HMPPS told us that there are mechanisms in the STC contracts to drive up performance. It is only as a last resort that they decant children to other settings, as they did in the case of Rainsbrook STC. Using their placement process, they told us that they …
Government response. The government agrees to monitor and measure whether it is meeting the diverse needs of vulnerable children in its estate, including girls, children with disabilities and special educational needs, and children with other protected characteristics, through the Youth Custody Service …
HM Treasury
9
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
Children in custody cover a wide range of demographics, by gender, ethnicity, and disability.20 Girls represented just 3% of children in custody in the ending March 2021, but they are some of the most vulnerable children in the estate, as they are more likely to have experienced victimisation (sexual and …
Government response. The government agreed to monitor and measure whether it is meeting the diverse needs of vulnerable children in its estate including girls, children with disabilities and special educational needs, and children with other protected characteristics.
HM Treasury
10
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Acknowledged
Following a long-term decline in children in custody, the Ministry and HMPPS anticipate the number of children in custody to more than double from 2021 levels by September 2024. They expect children aged 15 to 17 in young offender institutions (YOIs) will increase from 343 in July 2021 to 700 …
Government response. The government acknowledges the forecasted increase in the youth custody population but suggests it may not materialize as quickly as previously estimated. They state that the youth estate currently has sufficient capacity.
HM Treasury
11
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry and HMPPS accepted the weaknesses in current provision and told us that it is trying to address the need for more and better provision. They told us that they are using the four principles of the Taylor Review—smaller units; well-trained staff; a child-first approach; and strong leadership—to inform …
Government response. The government is seeking to improve all parts of the youth custodial estate by embedding ‘SECURE STAIRS’, skilling the workforce, using smaller units with higher staff-to-child ratios, and piloting new approaches to the resettlement of children leaving custody.
HM Treasury
12
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Acknowledged
The Ministry spoke to us about its vision to be more outcomes-led and to drive up performance and standards. It also wants to focus on early intervention. The Government has announced youth funding of £100 million a year over the next three years, including £60 million a year for the …
Government response. The government acknowledges the importance of early intervention and community-based support, referencing the 9.8% uplift in funding to Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) and the new ‘Turnaround’ programme.
HM Treasury
13
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Acknowledged
The average number of children in custody has fallen by 73% in the last decade, from 2,040 in 2010–11, to 560 in 2020–21, reflecting a long-term decline in the number of recorded youth offences.38 The Ministry told us that the reduction has a lot to do with diversionary activities, whereby …
Government response. The government acknowledges the youth custody population fell substantially, forecasts suggest it will increase, and HMPPS considers there will be sufficient capacity across the estate.
HM Treasury
14
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
Secure schools were intended to be located where there is demand.43 As the National Audit Office described in its report, the Taylor review proposed secure schools as small establishments located in the regions they serve. The Ministry originally planned to open one secure school in the South East and another …
Government response. The government states that 60% of children are placed less than 50 miles from home and that YCS placement guidance states that children will be placed into the most appropriate available establishment to meet their needs.
HM Treasury
15
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
HMPPS informed us there is a gap in provision in the North West.46 But it does not have any immediate plans to address this gap.47 The Ministry and HMPPS told us that their number one principle for designing provision and placing children is getting the best outcomes for the children. …
Government response. The government states that 60% of children are placed less than 50 miles from home and that YCS placement guidance states that children will be placed into the most appropriate available establishment to meet their needs.
HM Treasury
16
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The 2016 Taylor review called for education to be at the heart of dealing with children in custody and outlined a new model of provision called secure schools. The Ministry immediately accepted the findings of the Review and committed to creating two secure schools. HMPPS originally planned for the first …
Government response. The government states that arrangements are in place to exert firm control over the timetable and costs for opening the first secure school and commits to providing the Committee with an update on progress against the timetable in January 2023.
HM Treasury
17
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
A key reason for the delay was that the Ministry did not foresee the need for new legislation to underpin the secure school model which relied on established as a 16–19 academy, but also approved as a SCH. HMPPS appointed a charitable provider— Oasis Charitable Trust (Oasis)—in July 2019 before …
Government response. The government agreed to provide an update on the timetable in January 2023, confirming arrangements are in place to control costs and timelines, and formal governance structures are in place.
HM Treasury
18
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The Ministry originally assumed that it would cost £4.9 million to convert the former Medway STC site into a secure school, compared with £40 million to build a secure school from scratch.60 At the time the National Audit Office reported, the estimated costs had increased to £36.5 million (excluding £7.3 …
Government response. The government has arrangements in place to exert firm control over the timetable and costs for opening the first secure school, committing to provide the Committee with an update on progress against the timetable in January 2023.
HM Treasury
19
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
HMPPS began accepting applications for a provider to run the Medway secure school in October 2018 and received five applications. As the National Audit Office noted in its report, HMPPS used a DfE application process for academies (free schools)—rather than the regulations that govern public procurements—as they considered it the …
Government response. The government will supplement the Funding Agreement with handbooks on finance, governance and assurance and use 'ladders of intervention' to manage provider performance, with Ofsted having regulatory powers.
HM Treasury
20
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
HMPPS is using a Funding Agreement, rather than a contract, to manage Oasis. Such an agreement will not have a defined duration, although it will include an option to terminate for convenience, and HMPPS is still working out how it will manage performance under this arrangement.68 HMPPS told us that …
Government response. The government agreed to supplement the Funding Agreement with handbooks on finance, governance, and assurance, detailing performance reporting and issue management, adapting the 'ladders of intervention' approach from the Department for Education to drive improvements.
HM Treasury
21
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
The secure school will be registered as an SCH, although, designed with 49 places, it will be significantly bigger than a SCH.71 One consequence of its registration as a SCH is that the manager could refuse to accept a particular child. We asked the Ministry and HMPPS how they are …
Government response. The government agrees with the recommendation and plans to supplement the Funding Agreement with handbooks, adapt the ‘ladders of intervention’ approach, and ensure the secure school is committed to providing a 49-bed service suitable for the full range of the …
HM Treasury
22
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Acknowledged
The Ministry told us that it is focused on early intervention to improve outcomes for children.75 We asked the Ministry how it knows what works in terms of diverting children away from the youth justice system.76 It informed us that it is working closely with the Youth Justice Board and …
Government response. The government acknowledges the importance of early intervention and community-based support, referencing the 9.8% uplift in funding to Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) and the new ‘Turnaround’ programme.
HM Treasury
23
Recommendation
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
We also asked the Ministry and HMPPS about their evidence base for secure schools, including their evaluation plans. The Ministry told us that the secure school model is based on international evidence of what works, which it is trying to apply in practice by prioritising investment in staff training.81 However, …
Government response. The government agrees with the recommendation and will conduct an internal review of the Keppel Unit, recruit an evaluation team to develop an evaluation strategy for secure schools, and use the initial findings to inform delivery plans for the potential …
HM Treasury
24
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
We furthermore asked the Ministry and HMPPS about how they are responding to criticism about existing custodial provision.87 Josh MacAlister—in The independent review of children’s social care—described YOIs and STCs as “wholly unsuitable” for accommodating children in the criminal justice system.88 Yet, the Ministry said it is committed to the …
HM Treasury
25
Conclusion
Thirteenth Report - Secure training cen…
Accepted
Meanwhile, HMPPS intends to keep the Keppel Unit—a specialist unit for girls at HMYOI Weatherby—for up to 24 months, but it has not yet formally evaluated it.91 It said that it only plans to evaluate it at the end of the 24-month period. It acknowledged that it will be challenging …
Government response. The government will conduct an internal review of the Keppel Unit and develop an evaluation strategy for secure schools, informing future plans and delivery for a potential second secure school.
HM Treasury