§ Baroness Whitakerasked Her Majesty's Government:
What arrangements they intend to make for the inspection of youth offending teams. [HL816]
§ Lord Falconer of ThorotonTo provide regular external scrutiny of youth offending teams (YOTs) a new joint inspection programme has been developed by Her Majesty's Inspectorates of Probation, Constabulary and Prisons, the Social Services Inspectorate (England and Wales) and the education inspectorates, (OFSTED for England and ESTYN for Wales) in consultation with the Home Office and the Youth Justice Board.
The programme is expected to start in April 2003. Its purpose will be to:
"report to the Secretary of State and through him, Parliament and the public, on the effectiveness of YOTs in fulfilling their statutory duties to prevent offending by children and young people and thereby protect the public, whilst safeguarding their rights and promoting their welfare".
It will assess the impact YOTs and partner organisations have on offending, help to improve their performance and inform the further development of the YJB's effective practice and quality assurance strategy.
Led by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation the inspection team will include representatives from the full range of inspectorates concerned with YOTs work. They will aim to inspect all YOTs in England and Wales over a five to six-year cycle.