Guidance

Serious incidents notification: standard operating procedures for YJSs

Updated 29 March 2022

Applies to England, Northern Ireland and Wales

1. Serious incidents notification: standard operating procedures for youth justice services in England and Wales

1.1 Introduction

Background

In 2021, the YJB reviewed how intelligence against serious incidents occurring in the community was gathered as part of its statutory responsibility for oversight.

This highlighted that without a notification process of serious incidents in the community the YJB has limited oversight of these serious events. This limits the effectiveness of timely and appropriate responses both locally and nationally, the deployment of practical support and, when required, ministerial liaison. It also limits collation of national data where a fuller picture of performance, trends, themes, and lessons learnt could be extracted.

In June 2021, the YJB introduced a voluntary serious incident notification process.

Following a review of the voluntary notification procedure and consultation with the sector, the decision was taken to make Serious Incident notifications across England and Wales mandatory from the 1 April 2022 ^{[footnote 1]}.

Who is this guidance for?

This guidance is for youth justice service (YJS) managers/staff (or equivalent colleagues responsible for the delivery and or monitoring of YJSs in the community). It will also be of interest to local authority managers and other professionals involved in the safeguarding and protection of children.

What is the purpose of this guidance?

This document sets out what staff working in the youth justice system are required to do in order to report information to the YJB if a child is involved in one of the 6 categories of safeguarding or public protection incidents (as detailed in section 1.2 of this guidance).

The guidance does not replace any local or national safeguarding requirements or policies.

Why does the YJB need to know about safeguarding and public protection incidents?

The YJB has a statutory duty to monitor the youth justice system and share/promote good practice (Crime and Disorder Act 1998). Safeguarding principles as set out by government are embedded in this aspect of its work.

Intelligence related to serious incidents in the community supports the YJB’s oversight of the whole system.

For clarity, if an incident takes place in custody, you should report it to the Youth Custody Service’s Placement Team by calling its 24-hour telephone number 0345 36 36 36 3.

1.2 Identifying and recording serious incidents

From 1 April 2022 the YJB has introduced a mandatory system to report and record some categories of serious incidents. This means that all services are expected to notify the YJB when one of the following incidents has occurred.

The prescribed incidents must be notified to the YJB within one working day of a YJS becoming aware of an incident involving a child. If clarity is sought about the categorisation of incidents and the application of the procedures, then the YJB can be contacted via the serious incidents mailbox for guidance.

YJSs should notify the YJB of a serious incident if a child:

Is charged with committing one of the following notifiable incidents outlined below, (a full list of reportable incidents is included at Annex A)

• attempted murder
• murder/manslaughter
• rape
• grievous bodily harm or wounding with or without intent – section 18/20
• a terrorism related offence

Or

• dies while on the YJS caseload, or up to 20 calendar days following the end of YJS supervision

The notification should be submitted to the YJB within 24 hours of the charge being made or, in the case of the death of a child, the date the service became aware of that death.

In the event where there may be more than one YJS involved in the child’s case, the expectation is that the completion of the notification will be the responsibility of the YJS that was delivering services to the child at the time of the incident.

All relevant YJSs that have information to contribute should do so, co-ordinated by the notifying YJS.

If the child is charged with committing a listed notifiable incident, the YJS that will be supervising going forward should report the incident.

1.3 How to report an incident

From July 2023, YJSs will be able to submit a serious incident notification via the Youth Justice Application Framework (YJAF). If you do not have an account, this can be arranged by selecting “Request new account” on the YJAF login page.

If you need any assistance, please contact the YJAF Helpdesk via telephone or email, the details for which are on the login page or email the serious incidents mailbox.

Guidance how to submit a notification via YJAF is available within the YJAF Document Library under “Serious Incidents Notification – YJAF Reporting Guidance”.

If you experience any difficulties submitting a notification via YJAF, for a short period it will also be possible to also submit a notification via the serious incidents notification form.

Please send the completed form to the serious incidents mailbox and copy in your relevant YJB Head of Oversight.

If you experience any difficulties submitting a form, are unsure if a notification is required or have any further queries, please speak with your YJB Head of Oversight or email the serious incidents mailbox.

All information recorded will be managed by the YJB in compliance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and will be stored securely with restricted access.

Media enquiries

Safeguarding and public protection incidents often attract media attention. YJSs should follow local procedures on media handling and make reference to any media interest in the serious incidents notification form.

Further information

The YJB is available to offer and provide support and practical help to the local leaders in these situations. This includes advice on media handling, offering relevant practical support and linking with other YJSs who have had similar experiences. Any YJS requiring this support are asked to contact their relevant YJB Head of Oversight in the first instance, or if you are not sure who this is, to email the serious incidents mailbox.

Learning Reviews

The YJB asks, in addition to requiring local YJSs to submit a serious incident notification, that all published reviews of any relevant notified serious incidents be submitted to the YJB via the serious incidents mailbox at the point of completion/publication.

The YJB does not require the submission of any internally produced learning reviews, only those that are published.

2. Annex A: notifiable offences (at the point of charge)

The following information relates to notifiable offences (at the point of charge). For further information please read the Crown Prosecution Service’s Charging Standard.

• death of a child (while on the YJS caseload or up to 20 calendar days following the end of YJS supervision)
• attempted murder
• murder/manslaughter
• rape
• grievous bodily harm or wounding with or without intent – section 18/20
• a terrorism related offence

2.1 Attempted Murder

In contrast to the offence of murder, attempted murder requires the existence of an intention to kill, not merely to cause grievous bodily harm.

2.2 Murder

Murder and manslaughter are two of the offences that constitute homicide.

Subject to three exceptions (see voluntary manslaughter below) the crime of murder is committed, where a person is:

• of sound mind and discretion (i.e. sane)
• unlawfully kills (i.e. not self-defence or other justified killing)
• any reasonable creature (human being)
• in being (born alive and breathing through its own lungs
• under the Queen’s Peace (not in wartime)
• with intent to kill or cause grievous bodily harm (GBH)

2.3 Manslaughter

Manslaughter can be committed in one of three ways:

1. Murder but where a partial defence applies, namely loss of control, diminished responsibility or killing pursuant to a suicide pact.
2. Conduct that was grossly negligent given the risk of death, and did kill (“gross negligence manslaughter”); and
3. Conduct taking the form of an unlawful act involving a danger of some harm that resulted in death (“unlawful and dangerous act manslaughter”).

2.4 Rape

Rape is defined as intentional penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with a penis, without consent or does not reasonably believe that consent was given.

2.5 Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) or wounding - Section 18 or 20

For section 18 and 20 the level of harm is the same. The words “grievous bodily harm” bear their ordinary meaning of “really serious” harm.

However, the distinction between Section 18 and Section 20 is the intent behind the harm.

The prosecution must prove under section 20 that either the defendant intended, or actually foresaw, that the act might cause some harm. It is not necessary to prove that the defendant either intended or foresaw that the unlawful act might cause really serious or grievous harm. It is enough that the defendant foresaw some physical harm to some person, albeit of a minor character might result.

The prosecution must prove under section 18 that the defendant intended to wound and/or cause grievous bodily harm, and nothing less than an intention to produce that result, which in fact materialised, will suffice. Factors that may indicate specific intent include a repeated or planned attack, deliberate selection of a weapon or adaptation of an article to cause injury, such as breaking a glass before an attack, making prior threats or using an offensive weapon against, or kicking, the victim’s head. The gravity of the injury may be the same for section 20 or 18 although the gravity may indicate the intention of the defendant.

2.6 Terrorism related offence

A terrorist related offence covers those who have been convicted of:

• any offence under terrorist legislation
• an offence of conspiring, attempting, aiding, abetting, counselling, procuring or inciting an offence under terrorist legislation.

A terrorist related offence includes offences under terrorism legislation and other offences considered to be terrorism-related.

Terrorism is commonly defined as violent acts (or the threat of violent acts) intended to create fear (terror), perpetrated for an economic, religious, political, or ideological goal, and which deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants (e.g. neutral military personnel or civilians).

Terrorism is defined in the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT 2000) and means the use or threat of action where:

1. The action:

• involves serious violence against a person
• involves serious damage to property
• endangers a person’s life, other than that of the person committing the action
• creates a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or a section of the public
• is designed seriously to interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system, and

1. The use or threat is designed to influence the government or to intimidate the public or a section of the public.

2. The use or threat is made for the purpose of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause, and

3. Where the use or threat of action as defined above involves the use of firearms or explosives it is always terrorism, whether or not the condition in (2) above is satisfied.

1. As included within the terms and conditions of the YJ core grant ↩