Supporting children to thrive in youth justice

Children in the justice system are often viewed in relation to their offending behaviour and risk. Increasing attention is being given to approaches that recognise children’s wider experiences, strengths and potential for development.

Dr Kathy Hampson’s research explores how youth justice systems can better respond to children by recognising their individual circumstances, involving them in decisions that affect their lives and creating opportunities for positive development.

Dr Hampson is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Aberystwyth University, with previous experience working within the youth justice sector. Her research focuses on youth justice policy and practice in England and Wales, particularly how children involved in the justice system can be supported through approaches that recognise child development, the importance of positive relationships and the wider factors that shape their lives.

Working with practitioners, researchers and organisations across the youth justice sector, her research aims to strengthen connections between evidence, policy and frontline practice, helping to inform approaches that place children’s experiences and perspectives at the centre.

Embedding Child First approaches in youth justice practice

A key focus of Dr Hampson’s research is Child First youth justice, which seeks to ensure that children are understood and supported as children first, rather than being defined primarily by offending behaviour.

Child First justice emphasises understanding children as individuals, listening to their views, involving them in decision-making, building positive relationships and recognising their capacity for development and positive change. Dr Hampson’s research examines how these principles can be translated into everyday practice and what support practitioners need to make them meaningful within youth justice settings.

A key theme within this work is the importance of listening to children and ensuring their views are considered in decisions affecting them. Working with colleagues, Dr Hampson examined how collaboration is experienced by children involved in youth justice services.

The research explored whether children felt involved in decisions about their support and whether approaches were developed with them rather than simply applied to them. Findings highlighted that while many services were working towards more collaborative approaches, children’s experiences varied across the wider system, including policing, courts, education and other agencies.

The research has contributed to the development of resources aimed at supporting more consistent and collaborative practice across organisations involved in children’s lives.

Supporting practitioners through research and training

Dr Hampson has worked directly with youth justice practitioners across England and Wales to support the application of Child First principles in practice.

She has developed and delivered training to help practitioners understand Child First justice and explore how these can be applied within their own practice.

The training enables practitioners to reflect on their experiences, discuss challenges and share approaches to working with children in more collaborative ways that focus on their strengths.

Her research has also examined wider challenges in embedding Child First across the youth justice system. While many services have embraced Child First principles, differences in organisational expectations and approaches across partner agencies can create challenges in ensuring children experience consistency.

Through knowledge exchange and engagement with practitioners, her work has supported ongoing discussions about how research evidence can inform child-centred youth justice practice.

Informing debates about responsibility and custody

Dr Hampson’s research also examines wider questions about how responsibility and accountability are understood within the youth justice system.

One area of focus is the age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales, which remains among the lowest in Europe. Her work considers how children’s cognitive, emotional and social development may influence their understanding of responsibility and participation in legal processes.

In collaboration with colleagues, she has explored public attitudes towards the age of criminal responsibility and examined assumptions about how the public views approaches to children involved in offending, assumptions about which have stalled legislative change for decades.

Her research also considers how legal concepts such as guilt and intent are applied to children, highlighting questions about how these processes reflect children’s cognitive and emotional development.

Another strand of her work focuses on the use of custody for children and young people. While the number of children held in custody has reduced substantially over recent decades, her research examines the continued use of custodial sentences and the potential implications for education, relationships and future opportunities.

Together, these areas of research contribute to wider discussions about how youth justice systems can respond to children in ways that reflect evidence on development, participation and effective support.

Developing new approaches to engaging children

Dr Hampson is also developing new approaches to supporting engagement with children involved in youth justice.

One area of emerging research involves adapting LEGO® Serious Play® for use with children who are involved in the justice system. Originally developed for group and business settings, the approach uses structured LEGO®-based activities to encourage reflection, communication and problem-solving.

Dr Hampson is exploring how this approach could support children to reflect on their identities, experiences and aspirations in an accessible and engaging way.

Initial engagement with youth justice practitioners has highlighted the potential of this approach to support communication, build relationships and encourage participation, particularly with children who may find more traditional forms of intervention challenging.

This work is informing future research development and the potential creation of new youth justice tools to support approaches that focus on children’s strengths and identities.

Further Information

• Department of Law and Criminology 

• Dr Hampson’s research profile

• News story - ‘Essential’ to listen to children's voices on youth justice – report