Youth Justice Summit 2019: Children in the Criminal Courts

Child & adolescent brain development

Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore

Thinking about children in criminal law reform

Professor David Ormerod QC

Representing defendants with autism: case studies, research and working with experts

Professor Simon Baron-Cohen FBA FBPsS

No child in cells – Reducing custodial remand of children

Mital Raithatha (chair), Caoifhlionn Gallagher QC, Sinead MacCann, Penelope Gibbs and Mel Stooks

What are the issues that lead to children being held in custody at the police station or spending long periods on custodial remand? We know this increases the likelihood they are refused bail at court. With over half the children on custodial remand from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, reducing the use of custodial remand for children is a pressing issue. Given that the majority of children (63%) given a custodial remand do not subsequently receive a custodial outcome, what can be done to reduce the use of custodial remand? Understand the duties are owed to children and how legal representatives can ensure child defendants are provided with suitable bail addresses by local authorities where needed.

Turning 18 – the relevance of becoming an “adult” in the criminal justice system 

Laura Janes (chair), Katya Moran and David Emanuel QC

Children who turn 18 during the criminal justice process are treated as adults and are required to go to adult courts, adult prisons and receive adult sentences. There are approximately 2,500 children who turn 18 between committing an offence and being sentenced, with long delays during the police investigation stage, is this contributing to more 17 year olds being sentenced as adults? What can legal representatives do to reduce the risk of injustice? How can systemic issues be addressed?

Psychologist, psychiatrist, intermediary – instructing the right expert

Aika Stephenson (chair), Dr Sinead Marriot, Clare Parkinson

As many as 60-90% of children defendants will have significant language and communication difficulties (compared to 5-7% of children in the general population). How can we ensure the right expert is instructed and provides expert guidance for the legal representatives and the court.

How to prevent the unnecessary criminalisation of children: Diversion and the decision to prosecute 

Laura Cooper (chair), Greg Stewart, Florence Cole and Alex Temple

How to prevent unnecessary criminalisation of children? There is a presumption in favour of diverting children wherever possible – how do we ensure this happens in practice. How to ensure decision makers consider relevant background information, the wider duties owed to children and diversionary schemes available. Too often children who are in the youth justice system have been excluded from school, how might this be relevant to the decision maker and how to support children accessing education. Where necessary, learn how to challenge decisions to prosecute.

Criminal records – what next after the Supreme Court judgment?

Jennifer Twite (chair), Claire Sands and Chris Stacey

In light of the landmark judgment in R (on the application of P, G and W) (Respondents) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and another (Appellants) [2019] UKSC 3, what next for criminal records regime? How will this affect child suspects and defendants?

Children, neurodevelopmental issues and the criminal courts 

Shauneen Lambe (chair), Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, Brenda Campbell QC, Maya Sikand and Professor Simon Baron-Cohen

Child Terrorist – An Oxymoron? How the criminal courts treat child victims of trafficking and exploitation

Joanne Cecil (chair), Hossein Zahir QC, Michelle Brewer and Christine Beddoe 

Ensuring children effectively participate in criminal cases

Lynda Gibbs (chair), HHJ Dafna Spiro, DJMC Naomi Redhouse and Garry Green