27. Supplementary memorandum submitted
by the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales
1. In the Youth Justice Board's submission
to the Committee in September 2004, it was noted that a short-term
piece of work had been commissioned to examine the profile of
young people who breached Anti-social Behaviour Orders (ASBO).
The results of that work are now available and an overview of
the findings are set out below.
BACKGROUND
2. To get a fuller understanding about the
impact of anti-social behaviour legislation on young people and
Yots, the Board commissioned a small study to examine the profile
of young people entering custody as a result of breaching an ASBO.
The overall aim of the study was to:
— identify the management information
that was available and its accuracy and significance, as well
as any gaps in it;
— propose options on ways of improving
the quality and availability of management information;
— assess the scale of young people
entering custody as a result of breaching an ASBO; and
— identify the reasons why young people
are breaching ASBOs, using those who are currently in custody
as a baseline.
3. The study was carried out through analysing
existing data, collecting data on specific cases from Yots, and
interviews with key individuals involved in the anti-social behaviour
process including Yot managers, anti-social behaviour co-ordinators
and court recorders. The assessment of the number of young people
entering custody as a result of breaching an ASBO was based on
an investigation of 87 cases. The cases were identified through
a "snapshot" survey on a single day and, therefore,
are not necessarily representative. On some items measured the
sample size fell to only 43 young people when detailed case information
was considered. Finally, case data relating to ASBOs is generally
inconsistent and patchy. The only complete data on ASBOs are court
returns to the Home Office. Bearing in mind its limitations in
size and methodology, the study provides some useful indications
of the impact of anti-social behaviour legislation on the youth
justice system. However it will be necessary to await the result
of a larger, more robust piece of research that the Board has
commissioned, due to report in September 2005, to be sure of the
weight that can be placed on this study's conclusions.
OFFENDING HISTORY
AND CUSTODY
4. In assessing the cases of young people
entering custody as a result of breaching an ASBO, the study found
that 95% were already known to the Yot. In the 43 cases where
previous offence history was available, the young people had an
average of 42 previous offences and, as such, would be considered
prolific offenders. These young people had been subject to various
interventions prior to a custodial sentence and it does not appear
from this sample that the use of ASBOs is bringing a whole new
group of young people into custody.
Young people receiving custody for ASBO breach
and the number of offences they have committed
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION
AND DATA
FLOWS
5. The study shows that further work is
needed on the collection and collation of information on ASBOs.
The only complete sets of data were returns from the Court Service
to the Home Office from 2003. No single agency is responsible
for data collection, and a standard management information system
is not currently available to local anti-social behaviour co-ordinators.
The study recommends that Yots should be responsible for the collection
of such information, and this will be implemented through revised
YJB counting rules that begin in April 2005. In addition, it recommends
that Yots open a case file on any young person involved in the
anti-social behaviour process, for example at the Acceptable Behaviour
Contract stage. This has resource implications for Yots which
will need to be addressed.
CONSULTATION WITH
YOUTH OFFENDING
TEAMS
6. The study showed that Yots were consulted
in 71% of cases of young people's anti-social behaviour. In the
remainder, Yots would normally be unaware and there is a risk
that relevant information the Yot holds will not be taken into
account. The study also indicates that the anti-social behaviour
process could make more use of the skills available among Yot
professionals, to help ensure appropriate use of and conditions
attached to ASBOs. If Yots have responsibility for recording information
on young people in relation to ASBOs this should help ensure Yot
involvement in the process itself. Also, the guidance on the role
of Yots in dealing with anti-social behaviour, being produced
by the Board, the Anti-social Behaviour Unit and the Association
of Chief Police Officers, is seeking to address concerns regarding
the consultation process.
ASBOS RESULTING
IN CUSTODY—ROUTE,
LENGTH, CONDITIONS
AND BREACH
7. Of the 87 cases of young people in custody
for breaching an ASBO, the study found that two-thirds of their
ASBOs had been issued through the "stand alone" process
in the civil court. Of that number, almost 45% involved a prohibition
from committing a criminal act. Of the remaining third that were
issued "post conviction", ie accompanying a criminal
court sentence, 19% contained a similar restriction on a criminal
act. The differences may be readily explicable but warrant further
consideration of the evidential tests being applied. The guidance
referred to above also addresses the important issue of how to
sentence for ASBO breach, including where a young person breaches
a prohibition relating to a criminal offence and is already in
jeopardy from the latter. Sentences need to reflect the seriousness
of ASBO breach but also what will work best in preventing offending
by adolescents. The Board believes it is important to guard against
any concern that the imposition of an ASBO may be seen by applicant
authorities as a way of "fast-tracking" problem young
people into custody.
8. The study also highlighted that ASBOs
made in civil court are less likely to have the advantage of Yot
involvement. Individual Support Orders (ISOs) are being introduced
to address this, but the experience and networks of the Yot can
usefully reinforce such approaches.
9. The study found that the average length
of an ASBO imposed on these young people through the civil court
was 39 months, although these ranged from the minimum 2 years
to 10 years. Except for the most serious offences, these terms
are longer than for a comparable order in the youth justice system
and the study raises the question of the ability of these young
people to comply with orders of such length, although no clear
link is made between breach rates and length of order. The Board
questions whether it is effective for some orders on young people,
some as young as 13, to be so far in excess of the minimum length
on considering how much a young person's circumstances and maturity
can change within that period.
10. Of the cases of young people in custody
for breaching an ASBO the study showed that on average the breach
occurred within six months of the order being imposed. Nearly
a third were breached within the first month and 85% of breaches
occurred in the first quarter of an ASBO's term. The majority
of breaches involved restrictions with regard to geography and
association with others. These are quite challenging restrictions
for teenagers—it is difficult for them to understand and
abide by the need to avoid their friends or places where they
have hitherto spent a lot of time. Equally, breaches of this kind
are probably the easiest to prove. In any event, the Board is
concerned to see that restrictions are appropriate to the circumstances
of this age group. The Board also recognises, however, that given
the previous records of the sample of young people in this study,
breaches may have occurred due to a general disregard for sanctions.
The report is not able to provide robust conclusions on these
matters.
CONCLUSION
11. A key aim of the research was to give
a clearer picture of whether the introduction of ASBOs is directly
leading to children and young people entering custody who would
probably not otherwise have done so. While the report is limited
in its scope and requires follow up work, the conclusion is that
it appears that ASBOs are not resulting in a whole new group of
children and young people entering custody. However, the report
raises issues that need to be pursued further—the scope
to improve the involvement of Yots, the need to understand the
characteristics of this age group in finding workable sanctions
and how breaches can best be avoided and dealt with effectively
and proportionately within the youth justice system. Many of the
issues raised by the report are being dealt with in the joint
guidance for Yots being finalised with the Anti-social Behaviour
Unit and ACPO and through other areas of joint working between
the Board and its partners. This work seeks to assist relevant
agencies in developing their working practices to ensure interventions
to prevent and tackle anti-social behaviour are effective as possible.
17 February 2005
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