Reimagining Youth Justice: Celebrating progress and shaping the future at our AGM
On 18th June we held our Annual General Meeting (AGM), our first as a registered charity, and it was fantastic to be joined by so many of our members. As well as the formal business of the AGM the meeting provided an opportunity to reflect on the significant progress we've made as an alliance and developments in the wider landscape since we published our current strategy in 2022 and consider our future strategic direction.
Key outcomes from the formal proceedings
We're pleased to report that all proposed resolutions were passed by our members, demonstrating a strong collective commitment to the AYJ's mission and future.
Minutes adopted
The minutes from our previous AGM, held on March 28, 2024, were unanimously adopted as a true record of that meeting.
Annual report and financial statements approved
A significant part of our AGM involved the presentation and approval of our Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2024. For the first time as a registered charity, our accounts underwent an independent examination, and we're delighted to confirm that the examiner found no issues of concern.
Here's a snapshot of our financial performance for the year:
Total income: £147,260 (compared to £218,323 in 2023)
Expenditure: £144,039 (compared to £206,245 in 2023)
Surplus for the year: £3,221 (compared to a surplus of £12,078 in 2023)
Fund balances carried forward at December 31, 2024: £102,708 (compared to £99,487 in 2023), with £80,367 unrestricted as to use (compared to £57,085 in 2023).
We encourage all our members and stakeholders to delve deeper into our work over the last year and financial health by reading the full Annual Report and Financial Statements. It provides comprehensive details on our activities, impact, and financial stewardship throughout the year. You can access it here.
Reappointment of our Chair
We were pleased to confirm the reappointment of Lesley Tregear to the board as Chair for a further term of three years. Lesley's continued leadership will be invaluable as we move into our next strategic phase.
Welcoming new Trustees to the board
We are thrilled to announce the election of five new trustees to our board, bringing the total number of trustees to 11. These appointments follow a comprehensive skills and diversity audit undertaken last autumn, and a recruitment process designed to strengthen our governance and representation.
Our new trustees collectively bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise across various areas, including youth justice, governance, finance, and influencing. We are particularly excited that these appointments will increase the representation of racially minoritized people, women, and age diversity on the board.
Amendments to the Articles of Association
To ensure our board remains manageable and effective, and to align with our aims for board composition, two amendments to our Articles of Association were approved:
Maximum number of Trustees set at 11: Clause 29.1 of the Articles of Association has been amended to state: "The Board consists of not fewer than three Trustees and not more than 11 Trustees. The Board shall aim to have at least 50% of the Trustees at any time to be authorised representatives of Members.”
Quorum for Board meetings updated for consistency: Clause 36.1 of the Articles of Association has been amended to align with clause 29.1, now stating: "The quorum for a Board meeting is a simple majority of the number of Trustees in office at the time the meeting is held.”
A heartfelt thank you to retiring board members
We extended our sincere gratitude to John Drew and Tony Brook, who both retired as trustees at this AGM. Both John and Tony have been long-standing board members, dating back to when we were the Standing Committee on Youth Justice. Their dedication and insights have significantly shaped the organisation we are today.
Tony served as our Treasurer for many years, making a substantial impact in that role. While John will remain involved through his role with AYJ member Prison Reform Trust, his input into our governance will be greatly missed.
In recognition of their immense contributions, we are delighted to announce that both John and Tony have been made Honorary Life Fellows of the AYJ. This will allow them to stay connected with our work and continue receiving our newsletter.
Looking ahead: shaping our next strategy
The second half of our meeting was dedicated to reflecting on the significant progress we've made, as we are in the final year of our current strategy, which has guided our work from 2022 and concludes at the end of this year and so we also looked ahead and had early discussions to inform our future strategy which we will be refreshing over the coming months.
We had an excellent panel of speakers from across the youth justice space to help kick off our thinking including Keith Fraser (Chair of YJB), Desmond Browne (Director of Growing Futures), Gemma Abbott (Legal Director at The Howard League for Penal Reform), and Leon Smith (youth worker and formed Young Advocate). These contributions highlighted the ongoing inequity present within youth justice, in particular race inequity and the contrast between children’s experiences of youth justice services in the community and in custody. Significantly the panel also highlighted that while there has been some progress and change a lot has stayed the same raising the question of whether, we as an alliance, need to consider doing things differently if we are to drive positive change. .
The panel discussion was followed by breakout room discussions among members exploring the collective successes they were most proud of, what they wanted to build on and how they wished the youth justice system to be in 3-5 years. The insights gathered will be vital as we begin to refresh our strategy over that period of time.
Members were proud of:
The collective power of AYJ’s advocacy, noting that a united sector voice has shifted national conversations on youth justice reform over the past three years.
The steady uptake of Child First principles and the growing sector-wide recognition of girls’ distinct needs though they agreed implementation still lags behind strategic intent.
Members wanted to build on success through:
A sharper focus on the broader harms children face with consensus that policy now acknowledges these realities even if practice has further to go.
Advocating for clear, accountable plans to turn strategic commitments into day-to-day practice
Members wishes for the youth justice system in 3-5 years included:
Prevention through community-based, youth-work models
Diversion programmes that confront—and are funded to tackle—the structural drivers of racial and other disproportionalities.
A youth justice system in which no child is held in a YOI; instead with an expanded network of welfare-led Secure Children’s Homes providing care closer to home instead.
We have secured support from Esme Fairbairn Foundation to work with Justice Futures to develop our refreshed strategy. There will be further opportunity for members to feed, including a specific session for members led by and for racially minoritised people. We'll also be holding sessions directly with children and young people to ensure their perspectives are heard, and we'll be engaging with key stakeholders to gather their views on our work.
We are incredibly excited about the future and look forward to working with our members to continue to drive positive change in youth justice. Thank you to all our members for your continued support and engagement!