Praise for Peterborough’s Youth Offending Service

With an overall rating of ‘Good’ the inspection judged many aspects of the service as ‘Outstanding’, with one partner organisation referring to the YOS case managers as being “the glue that holds the support packages (for children) together”.

The report states: “There is a powerful sense of purpose within the team and an impressive balance is maintained between the sometimes conflicting demands of meeting children’s needs and managing the risk of harm to others that can result from negative behaviours.”

In its formal report the inspectorate noted:

• There is a skilled and experienced group of operational staff who are committed to delivering high-quality services

• The management of cases in the Peterborough YOS was outstanding in terms of assessment, planning and the implementation and delivery of the sentence of the court

• The management team is resilient, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and fosters a collaborative, partnership approach

• YOS case managers demonstrated great skill in establishing useful working relationships with children and their parents or carers

• The Youth Justice Management Board is actively involved in overseeing the YOS’s work and members show a strong commitment to the partnership ethos of services for children and their families.

The city’s YOS supervises young people aged between 10 and 18 who have been sentenced by a court or who have come to the attention of the police because of their offending behaviour but have not been charged – instead, they are dealt with outside of court.

A dedicated multi-agency partnership works together to put the needs of young people and their families first by building strong, effective relationships with children and young people, the report found.

Inspectors commended the service’s strong focus on empowering its staff to deliver a high-quality, holistic personalised support service for children and young people, their parents and carers.

Wendi Ogle-Welbourn, Peterborough City Council executive director for people and communities, said: “I’m delighted the Inspectorate has acknowledged the hard work of our dedicated staff. The rating awarded to the service is a true testament to the absolutely fantastic work that is being delivered in this very challenging and complex field of work.

“This year in particular has proved very challenging for our staff and they deserve a huge amount of praise for the very difficult tasks they perform day in and day out to support our children, young people and their parents and carers.

“They truly are an inspirational team.”

Cllr Lynne Ayres, cabinet member for children’s services, education, skills and the university, said: “Our Youth Offending Service provides a vital service to help prevent young people from re-offending, as well as playing a role in protecting the general public and local communities.

“I’m very pleased to see that all the fantastic work our team do every day has been recognised. The inspection report really is a reflection on the brilliant work they do and it’s no surprise that our staff received an overall rating of ‘Good’. I’m very proud of them and all the hard work they do.”

Vicki Evans, Assistant Chief Constable for Cambridgeshire police and chair of the local Youth Justice Board, said: “I want to congratulate all our staff for this achievement; the youth service and wider partnership work tirelessly to support young people, and this the overall rating is very well-deserved.

“I am confident that our skilled, experienced and innovative team will continue to develop supportive relationships with children, young people and their families so that they can receive our help when they need it most.”

To read the full inspection report, visit https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation/inspections/pborosmallyot/.

For more information about the work of the Youth Offending Service, visit https://www.socialworkpeterborough.co.uk/working/0-25-service/.