Recommendation 7

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 the cohort of children in custody has become more difficult to manage over the past decade, as it has evolved to include children with increasingly complex needs who have committed more serious offences, which STCs were not designed to accommodate.15 Alongside this, they have struggled with a shrinking provider market and leadership at STCs.16 As the National Audit Office noted in its report, the joint inspectorates have persistently highlighted the issue of ineffective leadership at STCs. Between 2017 and 2021, the supplier (G4S Care and Justice Services UK Limited) appointed nine different directors to manage Oakhill STC.17