The first review of how the CPS handles serious youth crime in over 6 years finds numerous areas of concern and some aspects of casework quality in need of urgent attention. It recognised that CPS prosecutors need to be familiar with the relevant law, procedure, policy and guidance. Importantly, it also acknowledged that their approach needs to reflect the immaturity and vulnerabilities of many young people involved in crime. It made a number of recommendations for change.
Serious youth crime – A review of how the CPS handles serious youth crime
Details
The review examined 20 files from each CPS area and found a significant variation across areas in how well youth charging decisions and casework were dealt with, especially in the application of youth policy or where the suspect’s status as a youth was particularly relevant.
They found some aspects of casework quality that needed urgent attention.
In only 38.7% of cases were they able to rate the quality of charging advice as fully meeting the expected standard. In just over half of the cases examined (56.1%), case strategy and analysis were rated as satisfactory.
Worryingly their findings also highlighted that prosecutors only properly applied the youth policy and took account of guidance when making a charging decision in 38.1% of cases with much variability between areas.
The inspectorate recognised that cases are increasingly complex, serious and sensitive and that many more cases involving youths are being prosecuted for serious violence, weapons, major drug dealing and rape. Most of these serious crimes remain in the youth courts rather than being transferred to the Crown Court and, given that these cases are dealt with alongside the rest of the magistrates’ court teams’ work, less time is given to each of these cases. This is worrying given that the principal aim of the youth justice system is to prevent reoffending and the court must consider the welfare of any child brought before it.
The Inspectorate provided the following recommendations:
1. CPS headquarters:
should review the criteria for becoming an approved youth offender specialist, especially in relation to the need to make regular court appearances, and how that can be achieved in the team structures usually employed by CPS Areas;
- must ensure that specialist youth training is delivered to all those dealing with youth work, and that training, guidance and policy are always up-to-date, comprehensive and relevant;
- needs to ensure that there are minimum requirements for the role of Area youth justice co-ordinators and that these are clearly set out and implemented in Areas;
- should require Areas consistently to produce specific youth performance data and direct formal quality assurance(using the current individual quality assessment scheme) to drive improvement in youth casework; and
- should ensure prosecutors have enough time to review and prepare youth cases for trial.
2. Each CPS Area:
- needs to ensure that their Area youth justice co-ordinator is qualified as a youth offender specialist and fully understands their duties in the role;
- should ensure that any advocate deployed to a youth court has had sufficient training and experience to deal with matters that are listed in or may be moved to that court, and time to prepare adequately; and
- should have a clear strategy for prioritising youth work to ensure that it is dealt with promptly. This strategy should be kept up-to-date.
3. Area and CPS Direct managers should ensure that all prosecutors giving charging advice or conducting youth cases have refreshed their knowledge of policy and guidance. Areas should monitor compliance at and after charge.
The Inspectorate listed the following issues to be addressed:
1. CPS headquarters should:
- ensure that the youth policy and guidance includes, or links to, other policy and guidance that is relevant but may not have been specifically written for youth casework; and
- continue its work on standard operating practices to include a mandatory, full review of all youth cases before the first court hearing. The outcome should include a method of tasking on the case management system to allocate the reviews to lawyers.
2. CPS Areas should ensure that prosecutors and managers take every opportunity presented in casework to provide good quality feedback to the police.
The Inspectorate did note the following good practice:
- Some Areas have developed and delivered local training to fill gaps in the national training provision.
- One Area produces youth casework performance data and shares it with the police at performance meetings.
The report states it is apparent that compliance with policy and casework are not yet at the standard that these cases demand and the CPS needs to train, support and equip its prosecutors in order to accomplish this. The report found a lack of focus on youth cases in some Areas and there were also significant variations across Areas in how well youth charging decisions and casework were dealt with e.g. in some CPS Areas, the work was not differentiated from adult magistrates’ court casework which led to some very serious allegations being reviewed, prepared and presented at court by prosecutors without the necessary training and experience. Some weaker Areas also lacked robust quality assurance of their prosecutors’ youth casework.
Overall, the Inspectorate reports that the CPS must ensure that training and policy development continue to improve and that a more consistent approach, more robust focus and better casework are delivered in all Areas.
Commentary
The findings of the report are troubling. They are also a stark reminder to those representing child defendants to be diligent in ensuring that prosecutors are considering every case carefully, applying the relevant law and guidance and challenging decisions made by prosecutors to ensure that children receive fairer and more proportionate outcomes and divert children away from the criminal justice system wherever possible.