Emily Graves spoke with Penelope Gibbs, the Chair of The Standing Committee for Youth Justice

Penelope Gibbs

Young Offenders Institutions (YOIs) in England are not providing the most basic education requirements; new data from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has shown. It found that just one in nine state-run YOIs are delivering their minimum requirement of 15 hours of education to each teenager per week. Edward Boyd, Deputy Policy Director of the CSJ, said: 'The youth justice system is being treated as a dumping ground for youngsters that no one knows how to help. Education is one of the best ways to reduce re-offending - but YOIs are failing to do this. He added: 'Our youth justice system is in crisis with more than two thirds (70 per cent) going on to re-offend within 12 months of release.'

To discuss this further Emily Graves spoke with Penelope Gibbs, the Chair of The Standing Committee for Youth Justice (SCYJ) that works for reform of the youth justice system in England and Wales.

Emily: Please could you tell me about The Standing Committee for Youth Justice?

Penelope: The Standing Committee for Youth Justice is an alliance of charities who are interested in a better youth justice system that produces less crime and fewer children who get in trouble with the law.

Emily: So how do you work with current and ex-offenders?

Penelope: We don't work directly with them. We're a campaigning organisation. We represent the views of our members, and our members are people like Reflex, The Children's Society, NSPCC, and Nacro and so on. We're representing the views and interests of other charities.

Emily: New data has shown that just one in nine state-run youth offender institutes are delivering their minimal requirement of 15 hours of education to each teenager per week. What are your thoughts on this?

Penelope: I'm really shocked by the work that the CSJ has done in uncovering this information, because these are children who really need as much education as possible. I have to say the education needs to be in a framework of them also getting really good care and their mental health needs and learning difficulties met; but the point is that they're captive anyway in custody and the time should be used to help them gain skills and knowledge so that they can turn their lives around.

Emily: Do you think this is important for them to be able to get back on their feet again?

Penelope: Yeah; the right kind of education; absolutely; because a lot of the children have very low levels of literacy and numeracy. Many are unable to read and write or do simple maths. Their needs are great and they're there and they need education.

Emily: For those who don't know what the education in young offender's institutes' looks like, could you tell me more about that?

Penelope: Obviously the children are in an institution; a building and it's not many miles away from a school, except that they're all in the same kind of site. They go to an education block where in the morning they go to classes; normally they're small tiny class sizes. It has to be said that it's not easy for the teachers and the teaching has to be orientated towards children who often do have learning difficulties.

Emily: Is there anything specific that you think needs to be changed with the education system in the young offender's institutes?

Penelope: I think the whole young offender's institution, the whole idea, needs to be approached differently. I wouldn't have children under 18 in young offender institutions. They're basically modelled on adult prisons and are not suitable for under-18 year olds, so I wouldn't have them there at all. If they need to be in prison then I'd have them in different kinds of institutions and I'd also free up the teachers, not necessarily to follow the national curriculum, but to have some things they need to achieve in terms of the children's learning and liberate them to do it in whatever way works creatively and innovatively.

Emily: What are some of the hopes for the future for The Standing Committee of Youth Justice as you continue to campaign?

Penelope: The government has recently finished doing a consultation about children's prisons which is what The Centre for Social Justice was responding to and then the government will come out with a response to that consultation where I hope they will say we'll have no more young offender institutions for under-18 year olds and we'll start with a radically different and better alternative.

Emily: If people want to find out more information about The Standing Committee on Youth Justice how can they find out more?

Penelope: Go to the website www.scyj.org.uk and all our documents and so on are there.