The AYJ has joined over 100 other organisations to support the #ChildrenAtTheTable campaign, calling on the next Government to make good childhoods a national priority and be a champion of all children, including those affected by crime and the justice system.

At the end of October, the Young Advocates attended their first residential!

In August, two of the Young Advocates attended a session, led by AYJ member the National Appropriate Adult Network (NAAN), to learn about appropriate adults, the training that NAAN provides to its members, and to share their experiences of police custody.

Over 30 organisations working with & on behalf of children and young adults in criminal justice system have called on Youth Justice Minister Damian Hinds to act over the appalling treatment of children in the secure estate.

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has published its Concluding Observations on the UK, setting out its concerns and recommendations regarding children’s rights

As part of the AYJ’s project in which we work to understand the experiences of children transitioning into the adult justice system, we speak with Leroy Logan MBE about the significance of research, discussion and policy focus in this area.

Today, the final civil society report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, as part of its examination of the UK, has been published. 97 children’s charities from across England have warned that critical children’s rights issues must be urgently addressed by the UK Government to prevent worsening impacts on the most vulnerable children.

The AYJ has joined over 80 organisations in making Joint Statement in response to Universal Periodic Review, which highlighted a wide range of areas where the UK Government is failing to meet its international legal obligations.

On 15th November, the AYJ team, Leaders Unlocked and one representative from the Young Advocates met with Change Factory. Representatives from Change Factory were visiting London, and other countries, to build an international network for youth justice.

AYJ has responded to the Children’s Rights Alliance for England’s (CRAE) call for evidence on the UK’s adherence to its obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

The AYJ has responded to the Children’s Rights Alliance for England’s (CRAE) call for written evidence to inform the Civil Society Alternative Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child 2022.

The AYJ hosted a meeting between the Ministry of Justice and AYJ members and the Young Advocates, to help the Ministry of Justice advise Ministers about the recommendations in the Independent Care Review.

The AYJ has signed a joint letter calling on Greater Manchester Police, Manchester City Council, and the Independent Advisory Group to retract a discriminatory letter sent to a number of individuals, including children, banning them from entry to the Caribbean Carnival of Manchester due to perceived ‘gang’ affiliations.

AYJ have joined a coalition of children’s charities led by AYJ member, Just for Kids Law, and have have sent a letter to the Education Secretary, Nadhim Zahawi, calling for the Statutory Guidance on Exclusions and Guidance on Behaviour to better protect vulnerable children facing school exclusion from child criminal exploitation (CCE).

AYJ has supported a consultation response by AYJ members the Children’s Rights Alliance for England (CRAE) and Just for Kids Law (JfKL), along with many more organisations including our members The Children’s Society, Become, NYAS, and New Horizon Youth Centre.

In March, the AYJ and a coalition of organisations wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister, warning that the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill will deepen existing racial inequality in the criminal justice system. Alex Chalk MP has responded on behalf of the government.

Our joint statement calls on Government to embrace a new vision of childhood and set out an ambitious cross-Government plan, backed by significant investment, that will be transformational for this generation of children.

Our joint statement calls on the Children’s Social Care Review to publicly commit to upholding the principles and provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

A coalition of criminal justice and race equality organisations have written to the Prime Minster warning that the government’s plans for policing and sentencing will further entrench racial inequality in the criminal justice system.

The AYJ is one of 80 organisations that have joined the End Child Poverty campaign and signed the letter calling for children and child poverty to be put at the heart of the Spring Budget.