youth courts

Review of the Children's Legal Representation Grant Scheme (Research findings no.48/2009)

Summary of the main findings of research which looked at the Legal Representation Grant Scheme, a scheme which permits children's hearings to appoint legally qualified individuals to represent children when this is required. The purpose was to review the operation of the scheme and inform its future development.

National standards for Scotland's youth justice services

This report by the Improving the Effectiveness of the Youth Justice System Working Group describes the characteristics of effective local management of youth justice services and outlines a set of standards to improve delivery.

The group was asked to develop a strategic framework of national objectives and standards for Scotland’s Youth Justice services, to help achieve the national target of reducing the number of persistent offenders by 10% by 2006.

The Kilbrandon report

The Kilbrandon report was, and still remains, one of the most influential policy statements on how a society should deal with 'children in trouble'. Though it is now over thirty years since it was first published, current debate about child care practices and polices in Scotland still resonates with principles and philosophies derived from the Kilbrandon Report itself.