Mentally disordered young offenders in transition from child and adolescent to adult mental health services across England and Wales

The Journal of Forensic Practice,Volume 19, Issue 4, Page 301-308, November 2017. Purpose This paper provides an overview of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services in England and Wales. The purpose of this paper is to delineate the national secure services system for young people in contact with the youth justice system. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews findings from the existing literature of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services, drawing attention to present facilitators and barriers to optimal transition. The authors examine the infrastructure of current services and highlight gaps between child and adult service continuity and evaluate the impact of poor transitions on young offenders ’ mental health and wellbeing. Findings Young offenders experience a broad range of difficulties, from the multiple interfaces with the legal system, untreated mental health problems, and poor transition to adult services. Barriers such as long waiting lists, lack of coordination between service s and lack of transition preparation impede significantly smooth transitions. Research limitations/implications The authors need to develop, test and evaluate models of transitional care that improve mental health and wellbeing of this group. Practical implications Mapping young offenders’ car e pathway will help to understand their needs and also to impact current policy and practice. Key workers in forensic se...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research