UK: juvenile justice report confirms steady progress

As a society, it should sit uncomfortably that children find themselves caught up in the criminal justice system, even more so that some of them require to be held in custody.

We need to tackle the issues that lead to young people ending up before the courts and ensure that detention is a last resort.

However, when it is absolutely necessary that a teenager requires a spell in a secure setting, then that experience must be as constructive as possible, with educational and health needs fully met and the likelihood of re-offending reduced.

Since 2012, children under 18 are no longer held at Hydebank Wood Young Offenders Centre but are housed at Northern Ireland’s juvenile justice centre at Woodlands in Bangor, Co Down.

A report by the Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice, Brendan McGuigan, has praised effective management at Woodlands which he said has kept young people safe while delivering a “progressive, child-centred regime”.

In fact, Mr McGuigan described the centre as the “envy of neighbouring jurisdictions”.

It is encouraging to hear a detention facility in the north receive such a glowing report given the difficulties experienced by other parts of the prisons system.

It is also very positive that despite budget cuts, resources are being directed towards improved health and education provision.

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