The Youth Justice Plan 2023 to 24 action tracker is shown below together with progress against each item:
Theme 1: Developing quality assurance and governance
Theme 1: Developing quality assurance and governance
| Action | Progress |
|---|---|
| Integrate Youth Justice Quality Assurance (QA) activity into the Children’s Social Care QA Strategy to ensure a consistent approach to QA and understanding outcomes. | Completed. The Youth Justice Team now have an integrated QA programme with Children’s Social Care. Due to the service moving into the Early Help and Communities department, the QA arrangements will need to be reviewed. |
| Data with regards to children released under-investigation and on police bail to be presented to the Youth Justice Management Board for governance and scrutiny, including any data held regarding disproportionality. | In progress. Thames Valley Police will be asked to produce this data as part of the local dataset development exercise. |
| Further development of datasets relating to children receiving Community Resolutions, including presenting behaviours or offences and any data held regarding disproportionality. | In progress. The Youth Justice Management Board has set up a Task and Finish Group to establish a data set of statutory and non-statutory indicators which will help us understand our children more fully. |
| Multi-Agency Practice Evaluations completed in relation to Serious Incident Reports and disseminate learning and delivery of any multi-agency action plans. | Complete (and ongoing). br>Two evaluations in relation to 2 children committing Grievous Bodily Harm took place in 2023 to 2024. Practice evaluations will continue to take place when serious incidents are reported. |
| Co-ordinate observations and attendance of Youth Justice Board members at Risk Focus meetings. | Complete. All Youth Justice Management Board members have attended a Risk Focus meeting. New and replacement members will be invited to attend as part of their induction. |
| Co-design a key performance indicator with children in Youth Justice - what should we measure that matters most to children? | In progress. Capturing the voice of the child is in development and is included in the Youth Justice Plan for 2024 to 2027. |
| Co-ordinate completion of an operational and strategic National Standards Self-Assessment. | Complete. |
| Embed a 'so what?' question to the Youth Justice Board agenda with each partner considering and naming the differences made. | Complete (and ongoing). |
Theme 2: Delivery
Theme 2: Delivery
| Action | Progress |
|---|---|
| Delivery of the Turnaround programme. | Complete (and ongoing). The Turnaround programme was delivered successfully to 14 children and their families in 2023 to 2024. |
| Delivery of the Who’s in Charge parenting programme. | Complete (and ongoing). The Who’s in Charge parenting programme was delivered to 51 parents and reached 110 children in 2023 to 2024. |
| Secondment of a probation officer into the Youth Justice Team. | Carried over. Probation has confirmed that it is not in a position to second a probation officer into the Bracknell Forest Youth Justice Team in 2024 to 2025. |
| Secondment of a permanent police officer into the Youth Justice Team. | Complete. |
| Renew commissioning of the speech and language therapist, considering local need. | Complete. Symbol have had their contract renewed for a further 3 years. |
| Review reach and uptake of drug and alcohol services for children. | Carried over. |
| Explore the introduction of a ‘home visit within 24 hours’ by the Youth Justice Team for any child who is identified in possession of a knife or bladed article. | In progress. The Act Now project is being rolled out into all areas across the Thames Valley which will require a face-to-face visit with children arrested for a knife crime within 90 minutes. |
| Increase the reach of prevention services to children who are released under investigation/ police bail and those at risk of permanent exclusion. | Complete. Every child that is released under investigation or police bail for a serious offence is offered a voluntary preventative service. Children at risk of permanent exclusion referred into the prevention service are discussed and allocated to an appropriate service through the Adolescent Triage Panel. |
| Develop a policy and process for joint working between the Youth Justice Team and Children’s Social Care for children who are Child in Need, under Child Protection and Children Looked After so that responses to safety and wellbeing needs are well co-ordinated, effective and not duplicitous. | Carried over. |
| Add an area crime and deprivation check to placement search criteria for Children Looked After where there is a proposed new placement location. | Complete (and ongoing). The Youth Justice Team contribute to due diligence checks for commissioning and the placement team on request. |
| Review the Community Resolutions process, including how cases pending allocation are managed. | In progress. |
| Develop local case recording guidance. | Carried over. |
| Develop written information for parents and carers about bail, remand and detention training orders. | Complete. |
Theme 3: Youth Justice Management Board development
Theme 3: Youth Justice Management Board development
| Action | Progress |
|---|---|
| Convene a ‘Meet and Eat’ session between Youth Justice Management Board members and children to hear from children directly about their experiences. | In progress. The Youth Justice Team have facilitated a meeting in July 2024. |
| The Youth Justice Management Board to develop a risk register in relation to partnership delivery of youth justice services. | Complete. See 3.3. |
| Undertake a ‘Child First’ development workshop as a Youth Justice Management Board to ensure continual embedding of the principles. | Carried over. |
Theme 4: Strategic development
Theme 4: Strategic development
| Action | Progress |
|---|---|
| Respond to the local Youth Offer Review. | Complete. The Bracknell Forest Youth Strategy was launched in May 2024. |
| Implementation of ‘Working Together to Improve School Attendance.’ | In progress. This is planned for August 2024. |
| Develop a strategic needs analysis for Bracknell Forest regarding serious violence. | Complete. See 4.10.7. |
| Launch of Bracknell Forest’s refreshed ‘Prevent Strategy 2024 to 2027. | Complete. See 4.10.7. |
| Respond to government development of ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love.’ | Carried over. |
Summary of overall progress
Summary of overall progress
| Thematic area | Number of actions | Completed | In progress | Carried over |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| 2 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 29 | 16 | 7 | 6 |
Actions that are ‘in progress’ and ‘carried over’ will be included in the Youth Justice Plan for 2024 to 2027.
It noted that preparations for the 2023 inspection took precedence in 2023 to 2024 and this resulted in some actions being carried forward into the 2024 to 2025 year. These actions, as well as those ‘in progress’, will be prioritised in the 2024 to 2025 plan.