A District Judge’s decision not to grant an intermediary to a 14 year old boy with learning difficulties facing trial in the youth court was quashed by the High Court, who have ordered the appointment of an intermediary for the entirety his trial.
This update outlines the amendments made to the Coronavirus Act and the Regulations and the impact on children and young people.
The Centre for Justice Innovation have released a briefing paper which highlights the significance of young people’s perception of procedural fairness in the Youth Court.
The Court of Appeal allowed an appeal on the basis that the wrong approach had been taken regarding the appellant’s age and maturity when the offences were committed as a child.
The Court of Appeal has confirmed that the impact of the Coronavirus epidemic on provision for prisoners can be a relevant factor when sentencing a defendant.
This review examines the overlap between children's experiences of domestic abuse and children's offending behaviour and explores the options for early intervention.
HM Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS) and the National Probation Service (NPS) have implemented a new Bail Information Service, which aims to provide and verify the necessary information to assist courts in making decisions about conditional bail.
A report on the evaluation of a tool which enables first appearance remand hearings in the magistrates' court with the defendant appearing by video link has been published. The tool has not been used for cases involving child defendants, however, it is being used to help courts function during the Covid-19 crisis and therefore many of the findings are immediately relevant.
The Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty's Prison and Probation Service have introduced the End of Custody Temporary Release Scheme (ECTR) which applies to young offenders. The criteria governing the temporary release of young offenders has been set out in Rule 5A of the Young Offender Institution Rules 2000, 'Coronavirus Restricted Temporary Release'.
