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Children and Families
Youth Offending Team
Bexley's Youth Offending Team (YOT) was established under
the provisions of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and is responsible for
providing or co-ordinating local Youth Justice Services. We work with children
and young people aged between 10 and 17 who are offending, or at risk of
offending.
Youth offending teams represent a joined up approach to youth crime,
expressed at local level through the Community Safety Partnership. The
Youth Offending Team is multi disciplinary and includes staff from Social
Services, Police, Probation, Health and Education.
The principal aim of the Team is to reduce youth crime.
Key supporting themes are:
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Early intervention - The Team aims to nip offending
in the bud and to prevent children and young people committing increasingly
frequent and serious offences.
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Involvement of victims - ensuring that when appropriate
the victim's views are heard and that they are given the opportunity
to be involved in any reparation or mediation programmes.
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Better parenting - Reinforcing the responsibilities
of parents and providing advice and guidance on improving parenting skills.
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Constructive custody - Working closely with custodial
institutions to ensure that time spent in custody is as constructive
as possible and that plans to help young people are put into effect while
in custody and on release.
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Changing offending behaviour - Delivering a variety
of programmes that address the factors associated with offending behaviour
and ensuring that young offenders understand the consequences of their
actions and take steps to change their behaviour.
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Monitoring and Evaluation - Ensuring that the work
that the Team does is effective and is based on evidence based practice.
Youth Justice Services to be provided or co-ordinated:
- The provision of persons to act as appropriate adults for children
and young people detained by the Police.
- Assessments and the provision of rehabilitation programmes for children
and young people subject to a Final Warning.
- The provision of Bail Support.
- The placement of children and young people remanded to Local Authority
Accommodation.
- The provision of reports and other information required by the Courts
in criminal proceedings.
- The provision of responsible officers in relation to Parenting Orders,
Child Safety Orders, Reparation Orders and Action Plan Orders.
- The supervision of children and young people subject to Supervision
Orders, Probation Orders, Community Service Orders and Detention &
Training Orders.
- Co-ordinating the placement through the Youth Justice Board's clearing
house of those subject to Detention & Training Orders.
- The implementation of Referral Orders.
The Youth Offending Team takes referrals directly from the Courts in
the form of statutory orders and from the Police through the pre-Court
Final Warnings.
The Team works with a number of statutory and voluntary organisations
to provide a variety of intervention programmes which will include programmes
aimed at young people who are at risk of committing offences. These agencies
include:
- The Youth Service
- Society of Voluntary Associations
- Thames Gateway/Charlton Athletic Football Coaching
- Police Youth and Community Section
- The Family Centre
- Belvedere Day Nursery
- Archways Project
- Highways and Amenities Department
- Connexions Employment
- Victim Support
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