Last week, the Government published guidance on what Police, Youth Justice Services (YJSs) and other agencies should do when a child is found in possession of a knife.   The guidance emphasises the importance of timely intervention for children – a key tenant of YEF’s Diversion Practice Guidance.   The Government guidance also sets out that YJSs should make use of the YEF Toolkit, stating that ‘Interventions should…

The impact of violence on young people   Violence and the fear of violence has both physical and emotional impacts on children and young people, perhaps more acutely than many of us realise.  67% of teenage children are concerned about becoming victims of violence and 22% say that the anxiety has taken a toll on their…

Four months after the ban on so-called “zombie knives,” our Youth Advisory Board (YAB) argues that while the ban is a step in the right direction, more comprehensive action is needed to effectively tackle knife crime. The 2016 ban on zombie knives was hampered by a loophole, allowing retailers to circumvent restrictions by simply removing…

25th November is the international day for the ‘Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls’ (VAWG). It marks the start of 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.   This is a moment to recognise the sheer scale of violence inflicted upon women and girls, predominantly by men and boys. This includes all types of physical…