Underage sex considered ‘normal part of growing up’, report warns – The Independent

‘Sexual health services failing to recognise victims of child exploitation and abuse due to expectation that under-16s will be sexually active, Family Education Trust claims.’

Full story

The Independent, 8th may 2017

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Priory’s care plan for anorexic teen Pippa McManus ‘inadequate’ – BBC News

Posted May 3rd, 2017 in hospitals, inquests, mental health, news, suicide, young persons by tracey

‘No adequate care plan was in place for an anorexic teenager who killed herself five days after being released from a psychiatric hospital, an inquest found.’

Full story

BBC News, 2nd May 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Water and youth – Nearly Legal

Posted April 18th, 2017 in housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news, rent, water, young persons by sally

‘First, a Southwark rent arrears possession case, demonstrating that the effects of Jones v London Borough of Southwark [2016] EWHC 457 (Ch) (our report) rumble on in Southwark, despite the Council agreeing to repay overcharged water rates for the period 2001-2013 to the tenants. (Our thanks to Serdar Celebi, Cambridge House Law Centre and Tim Baldwin, Garden Court Chambers for the note).’

Full story

Nearly Legal, 16th April 2017

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Teen jailed for carrying zombie knife – Crown Prosecution Service

‘A teenager convicted of wielding a “zombie-killer” knife has been imprisoned.’

Full press release

Crown Prosecution Service, 5th April 2017

Source: www.cps.gov.uk

You’re hired? New levy and tougher rules signal apprenticeship shakeup – The Guardian

Posted April 4th, 2017 in education, employment, news, universities, young persons by sally

‘Ministers say 3m earning and learning schemes will plug the UK skills gap but critics say new levy is yet another financial burden for businesses

Full story

The Guardian, 4th April 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Identity fraud reached record levels in 2016 – BBC News

Posted March 15th, 2017 in identity fraud, news, statistics, young persons by tracey

‘Young people are a growing target for identity theft cases, which have reached record levels in 2016, fraud prevention organisation Cifas says. Almost 25,000 victims of fraud were aged under 30, with the number of under-21s defrauded rising by a third.’

Full story

BBC News, 15th March 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Sentencing Council publishes new guidelines on sentencing children and young people and offenders who plead guilty – Sentencing Council

‘Today, the Sentencing Council has published two new sentencing guidelines. One covers how courts should make a reduction in sentence for offenders who admit their guilt, and the other deals with the approach they should take when sentencing children and young people.’

Full press release

Sentencing Council, 7th March 2017

source: http://sentencingcouncil.judiciary.gov.uk

Criminal justice agencies at risk of failing young victims of crime – Victims’ Commissioner

Posted February 27th, 2017 in codes of practice, criminal justice, press releases, victims, young persons by tracey

‘Criminal justice agencies are at risk of failing children and young people who come forward to report crimes because they are not being taken seriously, Victims’ Commissioner has today warned.’

Full press release

Victims’ Commissioner, 22nd Febraury 2017

Source: http://victimscommissioner.org.uk

A united approach – Counsel

Posted February 23rd, 2017 in barristers, children, cross-examination, news, witnesses, young persons by sally

‘HHJ Simon Drew QC and Lynda Gibbs explain why the pan-profession s 28 and ‘advocacy and the vulnerable’ training – being delivered to over 14,000 criminal advocates over the next two years – heralds a sea change.’

Full story

Counsel, March 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Musician who admitted groping students wins teaching ban appeal – The Guardian

Posted February 20th, 2017 in appeals, education, judges, news, sexual offences, teachers, young persons by sally

‘A world-renowned musician who admitted molesting three students has won an appeal against an indefinite teaching ban, after a top judge ruled the ban was “flawed”.’

Full story

The Guardian, 17th February 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ex-Sheffield City Council boss Roger Dodds jailed for sex abuse – BBC News

Posted February 6th, 2017 in local government, news, sentencing, sexual offences, young persons by sally

‘An ex-council boss who forced teenagers to engage in sex acts to get grant payments has been jailed for 16 years.’

Full story

BBC News, 3rd February 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Transgender teenager sues Hereford school for discrimination – BBC News

Posted February 2nd, 2017 in education, equality, gender, news, transgender persons, young persons by tracey

‘A transgender teenager is taking legal action against his former school for discrimination.’

Full story

BBC News, 2nd February 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Suicide is a national crisis. The law must stop hiding its true extent – The Guardian

Posted January 10th, 2017 in coroners, mental health, news, standard of proof, statistics, suicide, young persons by sally

‘It’s the UK’s leading cause of death for young people, but the way suicides are recorded may reduce the true number by 30-50% while perpetuating stigma.’

Full story

The Guardian, 9th January 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Some restraint techniques used in youth system ‘could kill children’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 6th, 2016 in children, news, personal injuries, reports, restraint, young offenders, young persons by sally

‘An internal Ministry of Justice (MoJ) assessment of restraint used against children and teenagers in young offenders institutions and secure training centres found that some techniques could kill or leave them disabled, it has been reported.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 6th December 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Our prisons are overflowing with immature and vulnerable men – The Guardian

‘Young men don’t mature psychologically until their mid-20s. Condemning so many to the toxic environment of our jails is a recipe for reoffending and suicide.’

Full story

The Guardian, 1st December 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Legal Aid Agency rapped over approach to damages payable to ward of court – Local Government Lawyer

Posted November 17th, 2016 in costs, damages, legal aid, local government, news, wardship, young persons by sally

‘A High Court judge has severely criticised the Legal Aid Agency (LAA)’s actions in a case concerning a ward of court to whom a local authority had agreed to pay damages for the unauthorised release of information.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 17th November 2016

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Paralysed teenager wins £3m legal battle with implications for every horse owner – The Independent

Posted November 14th, 2016 in damages, horses, news, personal injuries, young persons by tracey

‘A teenager has won a £3m legal battle against her ex-boyfriend’s family after she fell off a “badly trained” horse and broke her back.’

Full story

The Independent, 12th November 2016

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Cardiff teenager faces fight to avoid being sent back to Afghanistan – The Guardian

Posted November 11th, 2016 in Afghanistan, news, refugees, young persons by tracey

‘Thousands of people, politicians, celebrities and refugee charities have backed a campaign to stop a teenager who fled to Britain from Afghanistan as a 10-year-old after his father was murdered from being forcibly removed to the country of his birth.’

Full story

The Guardian, 10th November 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Baby adoption practices of past demand inquiry, say law firms – the Guardian

Posted November 4th, 2016 in adoption, inquiries, news, young persons by tracey

‘Pressure is mounting for a public inquiry into the adoption of hundreds of thousands of babies born to unmarried women over a 30-year period amid claims from some mothers who say they were coerced into handing over their children. A letter will be sent to the home secretary, Amber Rudd, next week from solicitors at two eminent law firms calling on her to convene a public inquiry into historical adoption practices in the UK. The solicitors say an inquiry would uncover the truth about the practices – stretching over three decades after the end of the second world war – and hold agencies to account.’

Full story

The Guardian, 4th November 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

McPhee v The Queen – WLR Daily

McPhee v The Queen [2016] UKPC 29

‘The defendant, a 17-year-old from Nassau, was arrested on a neighbouring island of The Bahamas on suspicion of murder following an armed robbery. He gave his mother’s phone number in Nassau to the police but no contact with her was established and no lawyer was called. After more than 31 hours in custody, during which time the custody log showed he had been taken from his cell several times but without any record made of his being questioned, a church minister in his mid-seventies was asked to come to the police station to witness the defendant make a statement. The minister did not speak to the defendant alone nor offer him any advice, but observed that the defendant was hungry and gave the police money to buy him a meal, after which the defendant made a written statement under caution confessing to the murder. Apart from the confession the only evidence against the defendant was that of another defendant who became a prosecution witness during the trial. At trial, the defendant claimed that his statement had been made following torture and so was not admissible. The judge rejected the claim of torture but did not consider whether the taking of the defendant from his cells had been for the purpose of informal interrogation, or whether the minister could properly be said to have been acting as an “appropriate adult” for the witnessing of a juvenile’s confession, and allowed the confession to go before the jury. The defendant was convicted of murder. The conviction was upheld by the Court of Appeal of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. The defendant appealed to the Privy Council on the grounds, inter alia, that the confession should have been excluded under section 20 of the Bahamas Evidence Act as being unreliable, by reason of the defendant having been subjected to unrecorded questioning in the absence of a lawyer or appropriate adult and in any event should have been excluded as unfair under section 178 of the Bahamas Evidence Act.’

WLR Daily, 24th October 2016

Source: www.iclr.co.uk