Government’s response to youth crime is cross-cutting. Home Office retains the lead on crime and antisocial behaviour, and is overseeing the development of the forthcoming Youth Crime Action Plan (YCAP). The Department has lead policy responsibility for youth crime prevention, while the newly established Joint Youth Justice Unit (shared between my Department and the Ministry of Justice) is responsible for advising Ministers about the youth justice system.
Youth offending is linked to a number of other negative outcomes, including substance misuse, teenage pregnancy and truancy. That is why the Paths to Success PSA sets out our vision for a more integrated approach to supporting vulnerable young people. Progress will be overseen by the Ministerial Committee on Families, Children and Young People and monitored by a cross-cutting official-level Board led by my Department.
The Youth Taskforce has been created within my Department to help drive improvements in integrated delivery for young people across a range of outcomes, including tackling youth crime and antisocial behaviour, and will publish an action plan in the spring setting out how it will do so.