“I would want to see young people working in here, that’s what I want to see…” How peer support opportunities in youth justice services can support a Child First, trauma-informed, and reparative model of practice for Youth Justice.

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Thompson, Naomi and Spacey, Morgan. 2025. “I would want to see young people working in here, that’s what I want to see…” How peer support opportunities in youth justice services can support a Child First, trauma-informed, and reparative model of practice for Youth Justice. In: Sean Creaney and Samantha Burns, eds. Co-production and Youth Justice. Abingdon: Routledge. [Book Section] (Forthcoming)

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Abstract or Description

This chapter explores how peer support opportunities can contribute to a combined Child First, trauma-informed and restorative approach for youth justice. While other scholars have identified clashes between these approaches, particularly between Child First and restorative justice, a focus on engagement with peers has been under-explored as a more child-centred model for reparation-focused work. We draw on qualitative data gathered with young people and parents/caregivers in a London youth justice service (YJS) to evaluate the effectiveness of its model of practice. Within this, peer support emerged as a key theme. Our participants expressed the desire to see young people working and volunteering in the YJS and felt this would help make it a safe and non-threatening space. Those who had completed their time with the YJS saw themselves as relatable roles models with the insight and skills to support others and, in some cases, expressed a strong desire to develop long-term careers in supporting young people. Our research challenges the notion that young people who have been involved in crime struggle to empathise, providing rich examples of their empathic understanding for peers. Peer support opportunities could offer a form of reparative practice that is Child First and trauma-informed. This would benefit both the young people being supported and those offering support, building a co-produced approach that is directly informed by the expressed needs and desires of the young people.

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