Youth Offending Services

There are two Youth Offending Services (YOS) in Leicestershire and Rutland.  One covers the Leicester city area, whilst the other covers Leicestershire county and Rutland.  The YOS works with young people aged between 10-17 with the aim of preventing offending and re-offending. 

The Youth Offending Service (YOS) are key to the success of the Youth Justice System.  They are made up of representatives from the police, Probation Service, Social Services, health, education, drugs and alcohol misuse and housing officers.  Each YOS is managed by a YOS manager who is responsible for co-ordinating the work of the Youth Justice Services. 

The aims of the Youth Justice System are;

  • To prevent offending and re-offending by children and young people. 
  • To confront young offenders with the consequences of their offending. 
  • To ensure young people are dealt with swiftly and fairly. 
  • To provide intervention which constructively tackles the issues that put the young person at risk of offending. 
  • To encourage reparation to victims by young offenders. 
  • To reinforce the responsibilities of parents. 
  • To ensure punishment is proportionate to the seriousness and persistence of offending. 

Because the YOS incorporates representatives from a wide range of service, it can respond to the needs of young offenders in a comprehensive way.  The YOS identifies the needs of each young offender by assessing them a national assessment tool.  It identifies the specific problems that make the young person offend as well as measuring the risk they post to others.  This enables the YOS to identify suitable programmes to address the needs of the young person with the intention of preventing further offending. 

In Leicestershire there are over 150 volunteers who play a crucial part in the delivery of the work of the YOS.  This includes panel members, mentors and approriate adults. 

Further information is available on the Youth Justice System visit: www.yjb.gov.uk and information on local services visit www.leicester.gov.uk (for Leicester City) and www.leics.gov.uk (for Leicestershire and Rutland). 

Useful Information Packs

- Community Panel Meetings Information Pack
- Mentoring Project Information Pack- Appropriate Adult Service Information Pack
- Short Term Volunteer Intervention Information Pack

DirectGov