The Merseyside Violence Reduction Partnership launched a new programme and multi-agency protocol in the Merseyside region: Green Light! A Child First Diversionary Response to Youth Road Traffic Offending and the Joint Merseyside Protocol for Youth Resolutions for Road Traffic Offences.
The purpose is to promote consistency in responding to youth traffic offending, foster better road safety awareness, and limit unnecessary criminalisation.
Details
Merseyside authorities noticed an increase in the number of children involved in low-level traffic offences, often related to e-bikes and e-scooters. The inconsistent responses to these offences, concerns that formal criminal justice processes may not be an appropriate approach (instead of education and diversion), and local injury data from Alder Hey Children’s Hospital highlighting risks from unsafe road use by children prompted further action.
To address these concerns, an educational intervention programme was launched and delivered by trained youth justice practitioners.
Based on the programme’s materials, the learning points involve:
- the biggest reasons behind road traffic accidents;
- road-readiness;
- the consequences of road traffic offences (both legal and real-life);
- how to use e-scooters and e-bikes safely and within the law;
- a virtual reality simulation of a road crash; and
- what restorative justice entails after harm is caused.
The programme aims to promote a ‘Child First’ approach, raise awareness, strengthen collaboration between the five Merseyside Youth Justice Services (to improve consistency in responses), develop safer road traffic practices, and provide an alternative to formal criminal justice processes for children (for example, Green Light! can form part of a Youth Resolution disposal).
Commentary
The initiative is consistent with the view that many practitioners in the youth justice system could share: formal criminal processes are often inappropriate for children, including for low-level road traffic offences, and may not achieve their intended outcomes.
Green Light! provides another avenue for children and a tool for practitioners to advocate for alternatives to formal proceedings concerning young offenders (such as out-of-court disposals), which hopefully respond to the underlying issues without incurring the long-lasting negative consequences criminal proceedings could entail.
similar initiatives in different parts of the country could represent a positive development in the system.
For related information, visit the Youth Justice Resource Hub.