Model Protocol Between Youth Offending Team (YOT) and Attendance Centre

Model protocol between youth offending team (YOT) and attendance centre

Protocol between

XXX Youth Offending Team (YOT)

and

XXX Senior / Junior Attendance Centre

1. Purpose

The purpose of this protocol is to clarify the working arrangements between [insert name of YOT] and [insert name of attendance centre].

Note: Where the attendance centre serves multiple YOTs then a protocol should be in place with all YOTs (ideally one protocol with multiple signatories).

2. Legislative framework

This protocol takes into account all relevant sentencing legislation, including the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, which comes into effect on the 30 November 2009.

3. Context

The context of this protocol and joint working arrangements takes into account the following local and national policies and procedures(YOTs may wish to specify and identify these in more detail to take account of local circumstances):

• Local safeguarding policies and procedures
• Local lead professional policies and procedures
• LocalMulti-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPAs)
• Local information sharing protocols
• Local policy/procedure between YOT and NOMS (probation) re Community Punishment Orders
• The YJB’sNational Standards for Youth Justice Services
• Other relevant guidance.

4. Partnership and planning

Strategic partnership:

Strategic meetings will be held between the YOT manager or nominated local manager (insert grade/role) and the attendance centre manager on [insert frequency] (suggest annually)] to inform strategic service planning and to discuss performance management issues.

Operational partnership:

Operational meetings will be held between the YOT manager or nominated local manager (insert grade/role) and the attendance centre manager on [insert frequency (suggest bi- or three monthly)] to promote effective links, support operational delivery and ensure enforcement and compliance issues are understood and, where necessary, addressed.

5. Joint training

The YOT will support attendance centre learning and development by making available a number of places on internal YOT training courses in line with locally agreed training and development plans.

The attendance centre will support observational visits by YOT case managers to enhance understanding of local provision.

6. Out of hours support

The attendance centre will have access to out of hours support via [insert local arrangements for out of hours support].

7. Roles and responsibilities

Key roles

• The case manager is responsible for the overall coordination and management of the case
• The case superviser is responsible for undertaking specific areas of work.

Children and young people can be subject to an attendance centre requirement in one of the following circumstances:

• As part of a Referral Order
• As a stand-alone order (under existing legislative requirements) or Youth Rehabiliation Order (YRO) requirement (under the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008) where the young person is not on another order or YRO requirement
• As a stand-alone order or YRO requirement where the young person is on another order or the same YRO with requirements involving the YOT e.g. Supervision Requirement or Activity Requirement
• Attendance Centre Requirement as an addition to another order (e.g. as part of Intensive Supervision and Surveillance(ISS) although not specified as a separate YRO requirement)
• As a stand-alone order or YRO requirement where the young person is on another order only involving NOMS e.g. a Community Punishment Order or a YRO with just an Unpaid Work Requirement

The case manager and case supervisor roles will vary as follows:

To note:

Under pre-Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 sentencing provisions, in cases where the young person is under the age of 18 and subject to a Community Punishment Order (supervised by NOMS) and is sentenced to an Attendance Centre Order, the officer in charge will act as case manager and NOMS will act as case superviser.

However, where safeguarding concerns are raised by NOMS or the officer in charge, then a YOT case manager should be appointed to provide advice and support to NOMS and the officer in charge.

8. Referral and notification arrangements

YOT staff will notify the attendance centre using the standard attendance centre referral form (or insert locally agreed procedure) within 24 hours of a young person being made subject to an Attendance Centre Order/ YRO with Attendance Centre Requirement or another order with an Attendance Centre Requirement including within Referral Order contracts.

The YOT will provide the following information to the attendance centre:

• Name of young person
• Date of birth
• Address
• Phone number (and, if under 16, contact details of family / carer where appropriate)
• Offence details
• Type of sentence
• Details of co-defendants
• Asset and other assessments
• All risk assessment information
• Any bail/licence conditions
• Name of YOT case manager (if applicable)
• (add any other locally agreed information here)

9. Access to attendance centre programmes

On receipt of a referral the attendance centre officer in charge will contact the child/young person (and, if under 16, also contact the family / carer where appropriate) and provide them with details of the attendance centre including the location, contact details and reporting/attendance instructions.

Where the young person requires assistance with transport to and from the attendance centre, then the relevant case manager will ensure that information and practical assistance is provided.

The officer in chargewill ensure that programmes provided by the attendance centre are developed to address local needs and offending profiles.

10. Attendance Centre Programmes

The attendance centre officer in chargewill ensure that agreed programmes are implemented and that any changes to the programme are communicated to the YOT case manager and/or NOMS staff.

For young people undertaking attendance centre programmes alongside Community Punishment Orders then the officer in chargewill provide the NOMS community punishment staff with details of the attendance centre programme and ensure that there is no conflict between the programmes.

For young people undertaking attendance centre programmes and YOT interventions then the YOT case manager will provide the officer in charge with details of the YOT programmes to ensure that the programmes are integrated.

11. Recording

The attendance centre officer in chargewill ensure that the following is recorded and provided to the YOT within one working day of the attendance centre session taking place:

• Compliance issues including attendance/non-attendance and behaviour
• Outline of programme provided and response by the young person
• Any new information/ change in circumstances.

The YOT will ensure that this information is recorded on YOT case management systems within one working day of receipt.

12. Communication

The attendance centre officer in chargewill be able to raise case issues with the relevant YOT case manager and, where necessary, consult with the relevant YOT operational manager.

13. Enabling and enforcing compliance

The YOT will have responsibility for breaches of Attendance Centre Orders on behalf of the attendance centre officer in charge.

This includes young people on Attendance Centre Requirements who were sentenced as young people but have since reached the age of 18.

The officer in chargeshall provide the required information to enable the YOT to prepare the breach pack with one working day of a breach occurring.

YOT staff shall inform the officer in chargeof the outcome of any breach proceedings within one working day or earlier (for example, where following the breach hearing, the child or young person is to return to the attendance centre within one working day).

14. Risk management

The attendance centreofficer in chargewill provide relevant information and, where necessary, will be invited to attend and contribute to:

• any multi-agency forum for young people identified by the YOT as at risk of causing serious harm to others
• local MAPPA if the young person is a relevant subject

Example: attendance centre and YOT protocol 1