Peer Reviews

The primary purpose of a youth justice peer review is to help a youth justice service and its partners identify their strengths and to highlight areas for potential improvement in the current provision of youth justice services. YJSIP peer review teams are made up of trained peer reviewers who are all experienced/current youth justice leaders. All reviewers bring their experience and expertise, acting as critical friends. Reviewers undertake the role in-kind.

 

YJSIP peer reviews are a unique opportunity for youth justice partnerships to gain a fresh perspective from peers alongside collaborative support in improving local youth justice.

A YJSIP peer review is a supportive yet challenging process. It is not an inspection and it is always by invite – it has not been imposed.

A peer review will focus on agreed key lines of enquiry that the youth justice partnership has requested the review focuses on. All reviews also include two golden threads: The Voice of the child, and Anti-racist, anti-discriminatory practice, diversity and disproportionality, given the importance of both in the work undertaken by youth justice services.

Peer reviews follow an evidence-based methodology to ensure that the findings that are presented to the receiving partnership, are evidence-informed and seen/heard from multiple sources. The peer review team, usually consisting of 2 co-leads and 4 reviewers, will present its findings to the receiving service and then provide a written report. It is for the receiving partnership to decide how and what is developed and how and what is shared following the review.

For further information, please contact yjsipadmin@aym.org.uk.

Getting involved: To become a peer reviewer, you must be a current YJS  Manager / Head of Service, or an Operational Manager directly line managed by the Head of Service working in a youth justice partnership within England or Wales. 

All Peer Reviewers receive training (2-day residential course) and must have completed at least one YJSIP peer review before they can be deemed fully qualified. Please note that in order for a peer reviewer to support other Services with mentoring or coaching etc. it will require further specialist training to be completed.

YJSIP is not currently accepting applications for peer reviews or from those wishing to become peer review trained.