Believing in second chances
Should having a criminal record mean you end up ‘doing the time’ even after you’re released from prison? Against the context of CYCJ’s work placements with the Scottish Prison Service, Nina Vaswani argues why giving someone a second chance in life – especially if their offence was committed as a child or young person – […]
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Shame – a prisoner’s response
As part of his placement from HMP Greenock with CYCJ, ‘Paul’ wrote a paper exploring the influence of shame within the criminal justice system. In this powerful blog, he responds to the issues raised from the perspective of his own experiences. I find myself in a quandary with regard to the detrimental issues and effects of shame […]
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Becoming ‘a nest of unfearties’
As the Children’s Parliament calls for ‘unfearties’, Claire Lightowler reflects on what it means to be brave when working to create a brighter future for Scotland’s children and young people. ‘A nest of unfearties’. Those of you who know that phrase will recall it within Edwin Morgan’s poem articulating his hopes and ambition for the Scottish Parliament […]
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The story behind the figures
Since 2015, we’ve been keeping you informed of the number of young people in secure care and custody. But what are the figures telling us? Debbie Nolan reports back. Unsurprisingly there has been long-standing interest in the number of young people in custody and secure care, and trends in the number of young people held […]
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In the public interest?
Is there ever a good reason to disclose the identity of a young person responsible for a serious crime against another child? In the aftermath of the death of Katie Rough, CYCJ Associate David Orr considers why choosing the best course of action when confronted by such emotive scenarios is never straightforward. The circumstances surrounding the tragic […]
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Allow youth to find their voice
In his first guest blog for CYCJ, Chaz Bonnar talks about how hip hop culture and ‘breaking’ can empower young people to transform their lives. It was only recently that I decided to make my full income from my passion. Breaking, the proper term for Breakdancing, single-handedly developed my confidence and self-esteem. In turn, investing my time […]
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An insight into life with a tag
In the fourth and final blog from our electronic tagging volunteers, Neil Hunter, Principal Reporter/Chief Executive of the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) struggles to stick to his curfew during a ‘humbling and insightful’ week. I happily agreed to participate in the week long experience of wearing a tag. Firstly because I wanted to know more about […]
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Taking a (short) walk in their shoes
In the third blog from our youth justice ‘tagging’ volunteers, Donna McEwan, a Practice Advisor with CYCJ, is in for a shock… I am an Electronic Monitoring Champion. This doesn’t mean I advocate tagging for all and sundry but think about how it could be better used as an alternative to secure care. So, in […]
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MRCs – fit for purpose?
From curfew planning to fashion fails, Law PhD student and our second ‘tagging’ volunteer Fern Gillon reflects on what wearing a tag really involves – and why she believes MRCs are still a work in progress. First things first: No, it’s not a ‘fitbit’. Yes, you can wear it in bath/shower. And NO, it does not […]
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