Youth community sentences
Referral Orders and Youth Rehabilitation Orders are issued by the Court and are classed as youth community sentences.
In most circumstances, the court will always ask for the view of the youth justice service ahead of sentencing a child to one of these orders. These orders have conditions attached to them, with the main ones being attendance and engagement with the youth justice service. The youth justice service will always have a worker at court, and they will be able to explain what happens next to children and their parents or carers following sentencing.
All children sentenced to either a Referral Order or Youth Rehabilitation Order will be allocated to a case manager, who will make contact and support the child throughout. The case manager will need to undertake a thorough assessment to understand why the offence was committed, what the triggers were and what support is needed to reduce the risk of it happening again. The case manager will work alongside the child and their parents or carers, making sure everyone’s voice is heard.
The youth justice service can support with:
- Communication – making sure that children are able to express themselves in the right way.
- Education, employment and training – helping children get back into school/education, training or employment.
- Drugs and alcohol work – helping to understand how substance use affects thinking and behaviour.
- Emotional and mental wellbeing – helping understand trauma and how to access support when needed.
- Use of time – helping to develop a skill or getting involved in activities/hobbies.
- Staying safe – helping children understand how to stay safe in the community/online.
- Increasing understanding – looking at how actions effect other people inc victims and communities.
- Reparation – an opportunity to take part in reparation work to make amends for any harm caused.
Additional information
Youth community sentences: Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 factsheet - GOV.UK
Find out more about assessment and planning in the youth justice system on the GOV.UK website.
