Youth Justice Service

What we do 

Lewisham Youth Justice Service (YJS) works with children and young people aged 10-17 years who have attended court and been given a statutory court order or received an out of court disposal such as a Youth Caution. We have legal obligations to support young people (and their families) within the criminal justice system and reduce youth offending, as well as to address problems and factors that lead to criminal offending behaviour. 

The YJS is a multi-agency team which is provided to meet the requirements of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The team is based in the Council's Children and Young Peoples Service Department and includes representatives from Children's Services, police, probation, education and health who are seconded into the team.  

What information we collect 

We collect a range of information including some or all of the following: 

• your personal information (name, DOB, address, telephone, email, NHS number, proof of identity, unique pupil number);
• characteristics such as ethnicity, gender, disability, home circumstances, language;
• parents/carers personal information;
• personal information about other members of your household;
• personal information about close relatives;
• you and your family’s immigration status;
• details about your physical and emotional well-being and parenting;
• youth offending information: offences (including alleged offences), criminal proceedings, convictions and sentences;
• health, social care or other services you are getting;
• information about your situation given to us by your family/carers and/or other organisations (e.g. GP, school nurse, Police);
• reports relating to your situation (e.g. safeguarding and other assessments, Child Protection Plans and Looked After Children reviews);
• any documents sent to us relating to you (e.g. referrals received from other agencies and professionals);
• educational progress and attainment information;
• school attendance, exclusions and behavioural information;
• as part of the process of supporting children, young people and their families, personal information will be collected from face-to-face meetings, over the telephone, by letter and email; and
• information from court orders and professionals involved with a child or young person where appropriate. 

Agencies we might share the information with 

• Other Lewisham Council teams (e.g. Anti-Social Behaviour team, Violence Reduction team, Housing, Education, SEN Service, Children/Adult Social Care, Complaints, Legal) so they can carry out their statutory roles and support our service;
• Other Youth Justice Services
• Lewisham Police
• Metropolitan Police Service
• National Probation Service
• Youth Justice Board for England and Wales
• HM Courts and Tribunals Service
• Crown Prosecution Service
• Lawyers and advocates (if you have instructed one);
• Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass);
• Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS);
• Education providers;
• Drug and alcohol services;
• Lewisham multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH);
• Lewisham multi-agency risk assessment conference (MARAC); and
• Other local organisations working in close partnership to deliver this Service. 

To safeguard your rights, we will only ever use and share the minimum amount of personal data as is possible. 

We will share personal information with law enforcement and/or other statutory authorities as listed above if required by law. 

Why we process your information 

We use your data to: 

• enable us to carry out our statutory functions and duties (e.g. prevent and reduce offending, increase victim and public confidence); 
• support children and young people and prevent them from offending; 
• reduce the risk of further offending by young people and help them face up to the consequences; 
• work with and support victims of youth crime; 
• assist with arrangements for a young person remanded by the courts to the care of Lewisham Local Authority; 
• assist parents/carers through voluntary support; 
• produce statistics and reports to research and plan new services. Statistics are used so that individual children/young people or family members cannot be identified from them; 
• develop policies and strategies; 
• comply with government department research and statistical returns (e.g. Home Office, Public Health Lewisham, NHS Lewisham); 
• account for our decisions and investigate complaints; and 
• inform targeted support and services to families, children and young people who are most in need and at risk of harm. 

How we use your data 

The legal basis for processing your personal and special category of data are: 

• compliance with our legal obligations;  
• the processing is necessary for the performance of tasks carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller; 
• contract for the supply of services entered into with our delivery partners; and 
• the data subject has given explicit consent to the processing of their personal data for one or more specific purposes (e.g. referral to Early Help Services, or to a housing provider for accommodation) unless we are legally required to do so. 

Whenever your consent to share your information is required, we will always ask you and clearly explain why we are asking.  You also had right to also remove your consent where this has been obtained by contacting the Youth Justice Service at Lewisham council. 

Where YJS has a statutory responsibility to process your personal data, your consent is not required as part of our core role to prevent and reduce offending and increase victim and public confidence, or if your behaviour constitutes a serious risk of harm to yourself or others. This also applies where the processing is necessary for legal proceedings, legal advice, or otherwise for establishing, exercising or defending legal rights.