We work hard to try and prevent young people becoming involved in criminal activities or anti-social behaviour.
If you admit an offence or are found guilty of a crime there are a wide range of penalties, agreements or orders that can be put in place.
The aim of these penalties, agreements and orders is to:
- Keep the public safe.
- Punish you for the crime.
- Help you understand what you did was wrong.
- Prevent you from doing it again.
- Change the circumstances that caused you to behave in the way you did.
- Make amends for the crime, pay for the damage done.
If you admit the crime and the crime was not serious then there are some things that can happen without you having to go to court. These include:
Penalties given by the Police and CPS
- Reprimand - A verbal warning given by a police officer. You can also be referred to the Youth Offending Team (YOT) to take part in a voluntary programme to help them change the way you behave.
- Final Warning - A formal verbal warning given by a police officer. You can also be assessed to find out why you are behaving badly and a programme will be put together to stop the behaviour.
- Acceptable behaviour contract (ABC) and Anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) - Acceptable Behaviour Contracts are contracts made between a young person, their parents or carers, and the local authority or Youth Offending Team. The young person agrees to stop the behaviour that is causing a problem and agrees to take part in activities designed to prevent the behaviour happening again. Anti-social behaviour orders are put in place if the young person breaks their contract. These prevent a young person from visiting certain areas. If the anti-social behaviour order is breached the young person may end up in court.
- Local Child Curfew - Local Child Curfews mean that you are not allowed in a public place between 9pm and 6am unless you are with a responsible adult. If you break the curfew there are penalties. The curfew can remain in place for up to 90 days.
- Child Safety Order - (Only for children under 10) Child Safety orders are supervision orders where a social worker or person from the Youth Offending Team supervises the child.
Community Sentences
Community sentences are tough. They combine punishment with action to change behaviour and make amends for the crime. They also deal with problems that can make you more likely to commit crime like drug or alcohol addiction.
- Youth Rehabilitation Order - Youth Rehabilitation Orders are a new flexible community sentence for young people. Each youth rehabilitation order is unique to the situation. They can include:
- Supervision.
- Intensive supervision and surveillance.
- Intensive fostering.
- Compulsory activities.
- Curfew.
- Exclusion.
- Compulsory education.
- Mental Health treatment.
- Unpaid Work Requirement (16/17 years).
- Drug testing and treatment.
- Alcohol treatment.
- Electronic Monitoring (Tagging).
- Compulsory attendance at Attendance Centre.
- Referral Order - Young people are required to attend a youth offender panel. The panel agree a contract with the young person and their parents or carers which can last for 3 - 12 months. The contract involves activity where the young person repairs the harm they have done and they are given help to change their behaviour.
- Reparation Order - Reparation orders involve the young person taking responsibility for their actions, understanding the impact of their behaviour on other people and repairing the damage. This can be things like cleaning up graffiti or repairing damage to property.
- Fine - It is the responsibility of parents or carers to pay fines set by the court, for people under the age of 16.
- Parenting Order - Parenting Orders mean that the parents of a young offender have to attend counselling or guidance sessions for up to 3 months. They may also have to attend meetings with teachers, enforce curfews and restrictions on their child for up to 12 months. If the parent fails to do this they can be prosecuted in court.
Custodial Sentences
Sometimes the crime is so serious, or the young person has repeatedly been to court, that there is no alternative to custody (being held in a secure place). There are two types of custodial sentence for young people:
- Detention and Training Order - The Detention and Training Order can be given to young people between the ages of 12 and 17. They can be detained for between 4 months and 2 years. The sentence is divided in half: the first half is spent in custody; the second half is spent in the community under supervision from the Youth Offending Team.
- Section 90/91 - Section 90/91 sentences can only be given at a Crown Court. They are used for young people who have committed crimes so serious that if an adult committed them they would go to prison for more than 4 years.
- Section 90 - The court sets a minimum term after which the young person has to apply to the Parole Board for release. When they are released they are supervised on licence for an indefinite period.
- Section 91 - This sentence is used if a young person is convicted of an offence for which an adult could receive at least 14 years in custody. The length of time spent in custody can be the same as an adult. This can mean that a young person serves a life sentence.
