Impact case study database

Policymakers have recognised that Hazel’s work has ‘provided an excellent evidence base that has underpinned significant and widespread development of resettlement support over several years’ and ‘clear messages that have been fundamental to the continuing development’ of policy and practice [5.1]. The Secretary of State for Justice referred to research from the BYC consortia [e.g. 3.4 – 3.6] as bringing ‘an important evidence base upon which we can continue to build our learning’ [5.2]. Based on his research, Hazel was appointed HM Deputy Chief Inspector of Probation (2014 – 2015) and as a member of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB, which has statutory oversight of the youth justice system) with lead responsibility for resettlement (2018 onwards).

4.1. Impact on youth resettlement policy

Hazel’s early work [e.g. 3.1 – 3.3] ‘raised policy awareness’ of the importance of addressing resettlement to help children’s outcomes and he has helped maintain it as a policy priority until today [5.1]. That early work ‘ fundamentally informed’ the YJB’s lasting model of funded enhanced ‘resettlement consortia’ projects [5.1].

The YJB’s current overall policy approach to organising all resettlement across England and Wales, ‘ **Constructive Resettlement (CR)**’, is the direct application of the BYC research framework, including constructive casework, identity-focus and the ‘5Cs’ model [e.g. 3.4 – 3.5], which has been endorsed by the Ministry of Justice [5.2, 5.3]. The 2019 Welsh Government/Ministry of Justice Blueprint for Wales also explicitly adopts the CR approach, specifying that all work with children from Wales leaving custody must follow the ‘5Cs’ model [5.1]. Applying the ‘5Cs’ model to policy has *‘ led to specific initiatives directly impacting on children in custody’* [5.1], including a new escalation process when support is not in place before release and better wellbeing support for children on first entering custody [5.1].

The BYC/CR Framework ‘has been extremely influential in informing the design and direction of [the Youth Custody Service for England and Wales (YCS)] and continues to have a major impact across the organisation’ [5.4]. In 2019, the YCS adopted the BYC/CR Framework as its theory of change underlying all of its operations for children in custody. This enabled a sector-wide reform programme for custody to become more ‘child-focussed’, providing ‘ an extremely valuable operational narrative to direct services’ and ‘an important cultural steer’ [for the workforce] [5.4]. Practically, the BYC/CR Framework has since been used as a ‘key reference point’ for (a) considering all interventions, activities and approaches with children, (b) commissioning any services or institutions, (c) senior decision making [5.4]. It allowed YCS to reform its casework model for helping children progress (around ‘Constructive Casework’) and informs the basis of its revised Behaviour Management Strategy [5.4]. BYC/CR also underpins a new approach for supporting 18-year-olds who are transitioning to the adult estate [5.4]. The Framework has provided YCS with a much needed ‘common language and sense of purpose’ on which it now conducts its multi-agency working with community partners [e.g. 3.4, 3.5, 3.7, 5.4].

In Scotland, Hazel’s research, including that showing disorientation after custody [3.8], *‘ influenced and informed the development of both strategy and practice’* for the Scottish Prison Service’s new vision and policies which commit to ‘addressing the potential trauma of liberation’ (‘Vision for Young People in Custody’ - 2014) [5.5]. It also directly informed the development of new quality indicators for youth custody across Scotland [5.5].

4.2. Impact on youth resettlement governance

Research messages from the evaluations of the resettlement consortia [e.g. 3.2] and early BYC project findings were adopted as the inspection criteria for judging the quality of resettlement provision across England and Wales, ensuring that Hazel’s body of research frames the quality assurance and governance of all youth resettlement provision across the country [5.6]. The first inspection using these criteria (2015) created 30 policy and practice recommendations sent to the Secretary of State for Justice, requiring responses from key agencies. These led directly to required policy ‘actions to address’ that include:

• Custodial institutions now contractually bound to make early resettlement planning a priority for all children and begin on entry

• A new operational framework to encourage temporary release on licence

• A requirement that Secure Training Centres’ strategies now include engaging with community partners and how information will be shared [5.7].

The ‘National Standards’ for youth resettlement (2019), set by the Secretary of State for Justice, are based on the BYC/CR Framework [5.1, 5.8]. As such, all Youth Offending Teams (YOTs, delivering services across a local authority) and secure establishments are required to produce a customised plan for all children in custody that sets out the personal and structural support to be made available to support the child in developing a pro-social identity. The National Standards provide a link to a BYC research publication for ‘how to apply the standards’ [5.8].

4.3. Direct impact on youth resettlement practice

The summary of policy and practice messages from Hazel’s research to 2012 is the main resettlement guidance on the YJB resource hub for practitioners (1415 reads since 2018) [5.1].

The BYC project translated research reports into policy briefings and practitioners’ guidance documents. Practitioners have stated that these publications are ‘helping to shape our approach to resettlement’ and that ‘both staff and young people have felt empowered and stronger’ by providing ‘different ways of thinking’ [5.9]. BYC findings are described by practitioners as ‘incredibly useful […] influenced our progress on resettlement pathways, girls in custody, accommodation, young people’s voice, education’ etc. and ‘provides a structure to audit practice against’ for YOTs [5.9].

58 YOTs have formally adopted the BYC/CR Framework as the model to redevelop their resettlement practice [5.1]. The first such adopter, Camden YOT’s Enhanced Constructive Resettlement model, has reported positive early outcomes for children and families [5.10]. The importance of the CR/BYC approach to improving practice is underlined by the GBP1,500,000 in grants secured by YOTs specifically to embed and develop it further [5.1].

Third sector and commercial organisations have described BYC research as ‘invaluable’ to their work and ‘new systems and processes have been designed directly as a result of some of the BYC publications and findings’ [5.9]. Professionals have noted how using BYC research resources has ‘made such a difference in many cases’ [5.9].

BYC findings have formed the basis of professional development on custody and resettlement for staff across the youth justice sector since 2018. Learning and assessment in the ‘Custody & Resettlement’ module (one of five) in the ‘Youth Justice Effective Practice Certificate’ is structured around the research messages [5.11]. The certificate is the sector-endorsed professional qualification for all YOT and youth secure estate staff across England and Wales.

4.4. Impact beyond youth resettlement

Practitioners are increasingly recognising that the BYC Framework and 5Cs model have application beyond resettlement [e.g. 3.7]. Four YOTs (Medway, Kent, Lewisham, Kingston & Richmond) are now also using these to underpin sentence planning with children on all non-custodial sentences [5.1].

In 2018, Hazel led the development of the new guiding principle for all youth justice policy and practice, not just resettlement, and which now underpins the Ministry of Justice’s National Standards for youth justice (2019). The BYC Framework was incorporated as the principle’s theory of change across the youth justice system, which guides all work with children to be ‘developing a pro-social identity’ and be ‘constructive and future-focused’ [5.1].

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the YCS senior leadership team has used the BYC/CR as its guiding framework within which to consider how to respond to the emerging operational challenges in a more child-focused way. On the ground, the YCS used BYC’s ‘Fresh AIR model’ as its ‘key message’ guiding all custodial staff on how to combat lockdown isolation for the 840 vulnerable children remaining in the youth secure estate [5.4].

In adult probation, the London Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) and Thames Valley CRC have adopted (since 2019) the BYC Framework as their overall approach to working with their 30,000 service users at any one time. They employ training guidance, handbooks and practice tools based on the BYC Framework, recognised by Inspectors as having improved practice and outcomes, offender engagement and sentence compliance. Specifically, the Framework also structured the guidance to all staff on how to manage service users during the COVID-19 pandemic [5.12].