The Youth Justice Conference 2026: Prioritising Diversion and Child Centred Safeguarding
Supporters Include
Overview
The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales continues to drive forward its 2024–2027 strategy, placing the safety, wellbeing and positive outcomes of children at the centre of reform. With record lows in first-time entrants and custody sustained, the next phase of youth justice reform focuses on one of the system’s most pressing challenges, ensuring that every child receives consistent, high-quality support regardless of geography, race, and early experiences at school. This ambition is reinforced by the Ministry of Justice’s “Modern Youth Justice System: Foundations Fit for the Future” policy statement, which sets out a new approach to oversight and accountability across the youth justice system. Despite clear long-term progress, significant variation remains in access to diversion, health and education provision, and multi-agency support at the frontline of service delivery.
- From 2024-2025 the average time from offence to completion was 230 days the joint highest level it has been with 2021 (Youth Justice Board, 2026)
- In the year ending March 2025 there were just under 3,700 knife or offensive weapon offences resulting in a caution or sentence committed by children (Youth Justice Board, 2026)
- In England and Wales 80% of children cautioned or sentenced within the youth justice system are from the SEND or neurodivergent cohort (Michael Sieff Foundation, 2025)
Join us at the Youth Justice Conference 2026 to explore how national reform is being translated into consistent frontline practice. Hear from leading experts, practitioners and partners on strengthening diversion, reducing unnecessary remand, delivering integrated support for children with complex needs, tackling racial disproportionality and building a more reliable, improvement-focused youth justice system. Through keynotes, case studies and practical workshops, the conference will showcase how those working within the youth justice sector can move from pockets of excellence to an equity in service provision across the UK.
Agenda
Registration
Chair’s Opening Remarks
Dr Sean Creaney, Senior Lecturer in Criminal Justice, School of Law and Criminal Justice, Edge Hill University (CONFIRMED)
Keynote: Diverting Victims of Child Criminal Exploitation
- Understanding children exploited into criminal activity: distinguishing victims from offenders
- Strategies for early identification and diversion from the criminal justice system
- Developing multi-agency pathways that prioritise safeguarding over prosecution
- Using lived experience and data to inform effective interventions and reduce reoffending
Molly Ellis, CEO & Founder, Project Accountability (CONFIRMED)
Keynote: Delivering an Equitable Youth Justice System
- Key findings from the Youth Justice Insights Report and what they mean for frontline services
- Addressing the postcode lottery: how to close the gap between the best-performing areas and the rest
- Outlining the Youth Justice Board’s improvement and innovation role in supporting local systems
- Strategies for embedding Child-First, evidence-led practice across all stages of the youth justice pathway
Niccy Mills, Head of Youth Justice Practitioner Apprenticeships, Designated Safeguarding Lead, Intelligencia Training (CONFIRMED)
Questions and Answers
Comfort Break
Keynote: Neurodiversity in Youth Offending Settings
Becca Randell, Associate Director, Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex, Senior Honorary Research Fellow, University of Sussex (CONFIRMED)
Elinor Jones, Translational Research Assistant, Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex (CONFIRMED)
Kloé Hampton, Senior Manager Youth Programmes & Training, Peer Power (CONFIRMED)
Case Study: Justice for Children with SEND and Neurodivergence
- Exploring the prevalence of SEND and neurodivergence among children in the youth justice system and the implications for their experiences and outcomes
- Drawing on the findings of the Sieff Foundation’s 2025 report, Justice for Children with SEND and Neurodivergence, to examine the barriers faced by children within the justice system and the challenges facing professionals supporting them
- Examining the practical reforms identified through the inquiry to reduce children’s contact with the justice system and improve outcomes for those who do enter it
- Considering the economic and social benefits of implementing these reforms
- Providing an update on progress towards implementing the recommendations and considering the actions needed to deliver more effective support for children with SEND and neurodivergence
Professor Cheryl Thomas KC, Professor of Judicial Studies, Director, UCL Jury Project and UCL Judicial Institute, UCL (CONFIRMED)
Questions and Answers
Lunch Break
Keynote: Transitional Safeguarding: Supporting Young People Beyond Age 18
- Understanding what transitional safeguarding is and why it’s important
- Outlining the key principles of transitional safeguarding and how these can be embedded in youth justice and probation services
- Key findings, recommendations, and organisational implications
Lisa Smith, Deputy Director, Research in Practice (CONFIRMED)
Session Details Coming Soon…
Shauneen Lambe, Director, Youth Justice Legal Centre (CONFIRMED)
Questions and Answers
Breakout Networking: Working Collaboratively to Improve Outcomes for Children and Young People in the Youth Justice System
This session will provide you with the opportunity to discuss the challenges and opportunities involved in supporting children and young people affected by the youth justice system. Share your experiences and approaches with colleagues from across youth services, local authorities, education, health, and the voluntary sector. Explore strategies to ensure a trauma-informed, child-centred approach to justice and safeguarding.
Comfort Break
Keynote: Delivering Child-First Justice: What Shame Tells Us That Behaviour Management Misses
- Understanding shame as the core emotional driver beneath the behaviour we see, and why addressing it changes the conversation
- The Compass of Shame – an accessible framework for recognising shame responses in practice and understanding what they look like in real interactions with young people
- Outlining what it means in practice to hold shame at the centre of how you work, and how it shifts the relationship between practitioner and young person
- What shame-informed practice looks like on the ground, drawn from VIP’s therapeutic work with young people involved in serious youth violence in West London
Charlie Rigby, Founder and CEO, Violence Intervention Project (CONFIRMED)
Case Study: Education Inclusion as Prevention: Disrupting Pathways into the Youth Justice System
- Exploring the link between exclusion, care experience and offending
- Outlining the role of education in early identification and intervention and what can be done to improve this
- Strategies for building effective partnerships between schools and Youth Justice Services
- Strategies for creating inclusive environments that keep children engaged
Paul Turnham-Coombes, Education Inclusion Team Leader, Somerset Council (CONFIRMED)
Questions and Answers
Chair’s Closing Remarks
Dr Sean Creaney, Senior Lecturer in Criminal Justice, School of Law and Criminal Justice, Edge Hill University (CONFIRMED)
Conference Close
Get in Touch
Speakers
Martin Pratt CBE
Board Member
Youth Justice Board
Shauneen Lambe
Director
Youth Justice Legal Centre
Hannah Blower
Change Lead
Youth Endowment Fund
Samantha Burns
Postdoctoral Researcher
Manchester Metropolitan University
Testimonials
This was the best online conference I have attended, it was full of interesting speakers. The networking was very much appreciated.
The speakers were programmed really well – there was a lot of diversity in approach but always supported by an evidence base. The day was engaging and well structured. Would really recommend.
Great opportunity to hear about important research and developments.
Extremely useful and informative.
Why You Should Attend
✓ High-level keynotes from leading policymakers and practitioners improving outcomes for those in the youth justice system
✓ Hear the latest national updates and evidence-based approaches to tackling reoffending and safeguarding vulnerable children
✓ Gain practical tools and strategies to embed culturally competent, trauma-informed, and child-centred practices
✓ Networking opportunities with speakers and senior colleagues across the youth justice sector
✓ 8 hours of CPD points towards your yearly quota
Who Should Attend
| Job Title Examples | Organisation Examples |
| Police Officer | Police Force |
| Service Leads | NHS |
| Counsellor | Schools |
| Youth Justice Worker | Charities |
| Safeguarding Lead | Youth Justice Service |
Pricing Options
PUBLIC SECTOR
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
VOLUNTARY SECTOR
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
PRIVATE SECTOR
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
Sponsorship
Raise Your Profile, Showcase Your Solutions, Generate New Business
If your products, services, and solutions can support our audiences in their roles, and you want to make connections and generate new business with key stakeholders, decision makers, and influencers, then please contact us using the enquiry form below.
IMPORTANT: There are only a small number of sponsorship opportunities available to ensure maximum exposure and ROI – contact us today to secure your place.
Virtual vs F2F
Whilst F2F provide better options for networking, there are many distinct advantages of sponsoring our online conferences including:
- Wider geographical reach of delegates and a different audience who prefer online to f2f
- Lower sponsorship package costs
- No travel/accommodation
- Less time out of the office
- No stand materials required (lower costs)
- 1 of only 2 sponsors involved – less competition on the day
- Prime speaking slot in the morning of the conference including Q&A – less distractions and easier for delegates to hear/absorb information
- Receive all delegate data after the conference to follow-up directly with those who attend and don’t attend (small % but still key stakeholders)
- Ongoing exposure via OnDemand access
To find out more and discuss your specific objectives, please contact us below:
