Editorial

Safer Communities

ISSN: 1757-8043

Article publication date: 12 July 2013

130

Citation

Bateman, T. and Smithson, H. (2013), "Editorial", Safer Communities, Vol. 12 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/sc.2013.56012caa.001

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


Editorial

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Safer Communities, Volume 12, Issue 3.

Safer Communities would like to welcome Hannah Smithson as new co-editor of the journal. Hannah would like to thank Emerald Group Publishing and co-editor, Tim Bateman for inviting her to join the Safer Communities Team. She is very much looking forward to contributing to the journal, in what looks to be a changing and uncertain period within the field of criminal justice and community safety. All of the papers in this issue touch upon the impact of cuts in public spending and the potential affects to the criminal justice system for both those working within it and those individuals it deals with. Safer Communities expects and welcomes more papers focusing on the effects of public spending cuts.

As a direct result of austerity measures, the world of youth justice is changing rapidly. Government cuts are being felt by the sector and many Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) are being scaled down or re-structured. The impacts of these cuts on youth crime and interventions in the UK is yet to be felt, but with youth unemployment at an all-time high, just under one million young people aged 16-24 were out of work according to January 2013 figures, the future looks difficult for many of our young people.

In the first of the papers in this issue, Sean Creaney argues for a more “child-friendly” youth justice system. Creaney explores the impact of risk focused intervention on the lives of young offenders and young people defined to be “at risk” of crime. He goes on to consider “alternative perspectives” and the prospect of a youth justice predicated upon the “principles of informal justice, child-friendly values and the notion of inclusion”. Drawing on labelling perspectives, he highlights the counter-productive nature of early intervention in the youth justice arena and argues for a social justice/child friendly approach, incorporating principles of informal community-based services. Within this paradigm, interventions including restorative justice approaches, would be tailored to the child's specific needs and abilities. Creaney goes on to conclude that although the Coalition seems to be in favour of restoration and diversion, the time is now ripe to see this perspective developed into policy.

A concern around young people ensnared in the youth justice system is also at the heart of Susan Thomas’ paper which explores the role of accommodation on young people's criminality. Thomas starts from the position that crime and young people's living arrangements are in many ways interconnected. She states that approximately 15 per cent of young people experience unsettled living arrangements. Based on, amongst others, Youth Justice Board reports, she examines a number of the problems that young people involved in the criminal justice system experience with living arrangements and how accommodation-related problems can impact on criminal justice decision making. Drawing on risk factor literature she explores the factors associated with homelessness, including relationship breakdowns, experience of local authority care, lack of educational attainment and qualifications and mental health and substance misuse problems. One of the most significant issues for Thomas is how quickly a young person's situation and circumstances can deteriorate and how, despite the best efforts of professionals, the ability to find stability and a settled pattern of living is at best very difficult. She argues that once in the criminal justice system, a lack of permanent, secure accommodation can lead to remand in custody, rather than the granting of bail. Outside of custody, under the supervision of a YOT, accommodation problems affect the ability of a young person to complete supervision, which can ultimately lead to breach. Thomas concludes the paper by detailing resettlement initiatives offered by YOTs, such as Resettlement Aftercare Provision and Integrated Resettlement support, both of which assist in finding young people accommodation. The paper is clear in its conclusion that YOTs cannot be held responsible for resolving accommodation problems. For Thomas the key lies with statutory agencies taking responsibility for providing accommodation to young people.

Sam King presents the findings of empirical research examining the employment narratives of a group of 20 would-be desisters and their probation officers. Amongst King's respondents, paid work was frequently identified as being of crucial importance for desistance from crime. Over half of the men were unemployed at the time of interview and many appeared to be quite pessimistic about the possibility of obtaining any kind of employment. This pessimism centred around a lack of previous experience in the job market; lack of educational attainment and formal qualifications; and a palpable sense of helplessness, given the fact that they had a criminal record and were under probation supervision. King goes onto describe how informal work was recognised and accepted by many as the only opportunity to gain employment. Respondents also spoke of wanting to move away from the area in which they lived in order to gain legitimate employment and cut ties with friends and associates who would offer them illegitimate job prospects. In his conclusion, King draws together the Coalition's plans for work as a pathway away from crime. His main argument is that government should not attempt to introduce a “one size fits all” approach in relation to employment assistance. He suggests that external employment agencies currently operate in isolation from prisons and probation which can have a detrimental effect on the offender; he concludes by suggesting a more joined-up approach whereby an employment agency becomes an integral part of an individual's sentence plan.

The recent Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) elections provide a useful context for research, detailed here by Peter Joyce and Neil Wain. This highly informative article considers a large number of issues related to the elections including, election campaigning, candidate demography, election results, profiles of elected candidates and the implications of PCCs on the policing landscape. Joyce and Wain draw upon their extensive knowledge of policing to provide their detailed account of the elections and conclude by questioning the impact the new post could have on the local balance of power; the potential politicisation of the police; priority on low-level crime and disorder and issues around accountability. As a consequence of the perceived interest in this area, Safer Communities is producing a special edition on the “PCC elections: 12 months on”, guest edited by Peter Joyce. Papers of between 1,500 and 5,000 words are invited that are relevant to this issue. Papers might draw on the early findings from empirical studies commenced in response to PCCs or apply relevant theories and ideas. Opinion pieces are also welcomed.

Finally in this issue, Tim Bateman provides a review of Jon Silverman's engaging new book, Crime, Policy and the Media: The Shaping of Criminal Justice, 1989-2010, Routledge, London. Bateman acknowledges the importance of the book for anyone with a passing interest in the relationship between crime policy and evidence.

Tim Bateman and Hannah Smithson

Further reading

Youth Unemployment Statistics (2013), “House of commons library”, March 20, available at: www.parliament.uk/briefing-papers/SN05871.pdf

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