Today in Parliament, Aylesbury MP, Rob Butler has asked the Justice Secretary on the importance of tailored programmes for young adults in custody in YOI Aylesbury and across the country, programmes that help to ensure rehabilitation on release.
Rob’s question follows the release of the white paper on a smarter approach to sentencing by the government, with proposals to provide the opportunity and support for those who truly want to turn their backs on crime.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Rob said:
"The white paper published last week by my Right Honourable Friend’s department proposes extending whole life orders to 18 to 20 year olds in wholly exceptional cases, and I think that most people understand and agree with this, but there are many others in that age group who will be released, including those serving at Aylesbury YOI in my constituency.
"Will my Right Honourable Friend ensure that young adults in custody can access programmes that are tailored to their specific age group and their particular needs, in an effort to ensure that they do not commit crime again once freed?"
The Justice Secretary, said in reply:
"I'm grateful to my Honourable Friend and I pay tribute to the therapeutic services at Aylesbury YOI, who I've met in the past.
"We've clearly stated that we see young adults right up to the age of 25 as a group that need treatment that is different to other cohorts, and we have specialist models for operation delivery to support prisons holding young adults to get the best results for this group.
"The curriculum of Aylesbury includes personal and social development skills, business, horticulture, barbering and decorating, and we are going to reinforce that with our new National Prisoner Education Service, that is focused on work-based training and skills.