Young offender institutions

Young offender institutions (YOIs) are secure facilities (or 'prisons') that accommodate 15-20-year-olds who have been committed to custody (ie sentenced or remanded) by the courts. The aim of a YOI, as set out in the Young Offender Institution Rules 2002, is to help offenders prepare for their return to the outside community.

Context

YOIs are run by the Prison Service (except where contracted out). The Prison Service's statement of purpose is to serve the public by keeping in custody those committed to it by the courts; its stated duty is to look after prisoners with humanity and to help them lead law-abiding and useful lives, both in custody and after release. One of its key objectives is to protect the public by reducing the risks of prisoners reoffending.

The Youth Justice Board is responsible for all under-18s in the criminal justice system. It commissions and purchases all places in YOIs for under-18s. It does this within the context of the overarching principal aim of the youth justice system: "to prevent offending by young people" (this statutory aim was established by Crime and Disorder Act 1998, which also placed for the first time a duty on all agencies working within the youth justice system to have regard to that aim).

What do they do?  

The main role of a YOI is to secure custody of young people committed to custody by the courts. The aims, responsibilities and general principles applying to the management of YOIs are set out in the Young Offender Institution Rules 2002. These are contained in a statutory instrument made by the Home Secretary in accordance with powers under the Prison Act 1952.

The rules define the aim of a YOI as being to help offenders prepare for their return to the outside community. This aim is to be achieved, in particular, by:

• The provision of a programme of activities, including education, training and work designed to assist offenders to acquire or develop personal responsibility, self-discipline, physical fitness, interests and skills, and to obtain suitable employment after release
• Fostering links between the offender and the outside community
• Cooperating with services responsible for the offender's supervision after release

Education and training

The rules are extensive; they cover issues such as communications, visiting arrangements, sleeping accommodation, exercise and discipline, for example. There are also rules governing education, training and work. These require provision to be made for the education of inmates through programmes of class teaching or private study within the normal working week, as well as evenings and weekends where practicable.

Young people of compulsory school age should receive at least 15 hours education within the normal working week. Training courses should foster personal responsibility and a young person's interests and skills, as well as improve their chances of obtaining employment after release. Work should help inmates prepare for their return to the community.

All YOIs have personal officer schemes. Officers are trained to help with any problems a young person has and to play an important part in developing and refining a prisoner's sentence plan.

Pre-release courses, led by prison officers and contributed to by specialists from outside the YOI, help young people overcome practical problems they might face on release, such as accommodation, benefits, and drugs. Some YOIs provide opportunities to take part in community service volunteer programmes.

Planning

Shortly after a young person is admitted to a YOI, a training plan will be drawn up. This will address education, training, health and accommodation needs, and identify objectives and means of measuring progress. A supervising officer will be appointed at the start of the sentence (a probation officer, social worker, or member of the youth offending team) whose responsibility will extend from sentence planning to post-release supervision.

A comparable sentence plan is also developed for all 18-20-year-olds to help them make the most of their time in custody and to plan for when they are released. The aim is to help them continue a law-abiding life after release.

Legislation

There are a number of statutes covering the sentencing and detention of young people, but the key piece of legislation is the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The act:

• Introduced for the first time a statutory principal aim for the youth justice system to prevent offending by children and young people
• Established the Youth Justice Board
• Provided for the establishment of youth offending teams
• Introduced the detention and training order - a custodial sentence for young people aged 12-17 (imposed for offences which would be punishable with imprisonment when committed by adults)

Structure and accountability

The Youth Justice Board (YJB) is responsible for placing young people under 18 (juveniles) in secure accommodation. It commissions and purchases places for under-18s at YOIs, who are held in discrete juvenile wings. YOIs have lower ratios of staff to young people than either of the other two forms of secure accommodation (secure training centres or local authority secure children's homes). YOIs are therefore generally considered to be inappropriate for more vulnerable young offenders. (Secure training centres and secure children's homes accommodate only young people under 18.)

YOIs are run by the Prison Service (except for three YOIs which are contracted out to private companies). Like other prisons, each YOI is managed by a governor (or by a director, in the case of a private institution) who works with a senior management team comprising a deputy governor, a governor in charge of each residential unit, and a governor with lead responsibilities for specific areas. The team may be supplemented by civilian lead practitioners, in functions such as psychology and probation, for example.

There are a number of ways in which prisons (including YOIs) are regulated. These include independent monitoring by the Independent Monitoring Board (formerly the Board of Visitors), investigation of complaints by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman, and inspections by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons.

The Prison Service is an executive agency of the Home Office; the director general is appointed by the Home Secretary. The YJB is an executive non-departmental public body. Its board members are appointed by the Home Secretary.