The Youth Justice System's Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications and impacts for policy, practice and justice-involved children

在新冠肺炎大流行期间和之后，它将对所有儿童产生社会影响。然而，对于那些在青年司法系统中的人来说，影响可能是异常的。这些儿童中有不成比例的数量具有复杂的需求，来自BAME背景，曾被学校开除，许多儿童来自结果通常比平均水平更差的群体，包括那些暴露在不利童年经历中的儿童(贝特曼，2017)。青年司法系统正面临一种奇怪的中断；一方面，刑事审判被推迟，逮捕人数减少，另一方面，存在的性别不相称、精神健康、家庭暴力和学校参与等问题对涉及司法的儿童来说是严重风险的领域。迫切需要对这一流行病对这些儿童和与他们一起工作的人产生的影响有一个明确的认识。事实上，从政治和媒体的角度来看，都缺乏对这一群体的关注。我们确实知道，这一流行病对青年司法系统产生了前所未有的影响和后果，从专业人员如何适应远程工作、刑事审判的延误以及拘留环境中儿童的安全等方面。通过与我们的青年司法同事联络，我们知道青年司法系统的每个阶段都有不同的反应。该项目将把法定合作伙伴、第三部门组织、高级国家政策制定者/决策者和有生活经验的儿童聚集在一起。它将提供一个独特的机会来收集见解和提出有影响力的建议。通过让儿童参与我们的项目并与其合作，我们将解决青年司法研究中常见的自上而下的研究层次结构，并确保儿童的声音得到优先考虑。

During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be societal implications for all children. However, for those in the youth justice system the impacts are likely to be exceptional. A disproportionate number of these children have complex needs, are from BAME backgrounds, have experienced school exclusions, and many come from groups with generally worse outcomes than average, including those with exposure to adverse childhood experiences (Bateman, 2017). The youth justice system is facing a strange hiatus; on the one hand, criminal trials have been delayed and arrests are down, while on the other, existing issues of BAME disproportionality, mental health, domestic abuse and school engagement are areas of acute risk for justice-involved children. There is an urgent need to develop a clear understanding of the impact of the pandemic on these children and those who work with them. Indeed, there has been a lack of focus on this group both from a political and media perspective. We do know that the pandemic has had unprecedented implications and consequences for the youth justice system, from how professionals have had to adapt to remote working, the delay of criminal trials, and the safety of children in custodial settings. Liaising with our youth justice colleagues, we know that each stage of the youth justice system has responded differently. This project will bring together statutory partners, third sector organisations, senior national policy/decision-makers, and children with lived experiences. It will provide a unique opportunity to gather insight and to produce impactful recommendations. By involving and working with children in our project, we will address the usual top-down research hierarchies inherent in youth justice research and ensure that children's voices are prioritised.