Director Fiona Dyer opens the conference and introduces our Day 1 Chair, Joanna Macdonald, kicking off what is sure to be an excellent two days of packed talks, workshops and panel discussions on the theme - Diversity, Inequality and Justice. #YJConf26

We are pleased to announce the launch of the 2026 edition of Children and young people in conflict with the law: policy, practice and legislation🎉

We now welcome to the stage @lbilli91.bsky.social for his keynote, "Inequalities, Institutions, interventions and interactions in the lives of young people in conflict with the law."

If you've listened to our latest episode of Creative Conversations with CYCJ, you'll have heard from Craig Houston discussing research into the interaction between school exclusion and antisocial behaviour. Now, we can share with you the report that details his findings. 👇

Our blog from Dr Haley Sneed shared the voices of children from groupwork activities across Scotland. Now we've published an evidence briefing, bringing children’s perspectives into direct dialogue with the existing research base on school exclusion. Read it here: 👇

June is going to be busy 👇👇

We've added another brilliant webinar to our Summer series 👇 Complex Lives: The enduring impact of care-experience for people in the justice system 🗓️ 18 August ⏰ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM BST

CYCJ wishes to extend warm congratulations to all of the newly elected and re-elected members of the Scottish Parliament. As a boundary spanning intermediary organisation, we work closely with policy makers, collaborating on new legislation and providing expertise from our multi-disciplinary teams.

We are delighted to share a new article on lessons from Scotland on child-centred justice, by @fionadyer.bsky.social @jenniferiicf.bsky.social and Cedric Foussard. Read here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... And sign up for our accompanying webinar in May: www.tickettailor.com/events/child...

Come and work with us 👇👇

Thank you to @carlenefirmin.bsky.social for inviting us to be part of the Contexts of Contextual Safeguarding conference and launch of the Global Centre for Contextual Safeguarding, and to share insights from the work happening across Scotland.

She reiterated the importance of using contextual safeguarding as part of ensuring that we get it right for every child, including those in conflict with the law.

Director @fionadyer.bsky.social joined colleagues for a discussion on 'Reimagining the relationship between care and justice frameworks when responding to extra-familial harm' today at the launch of the Global Centre for Contextual Safeguarding Durham University.

Director @fionadyer.bsky.social is speaking at Contexts of Contextual Safeguarding: Creating safety for adolescents beyond their homes across sectors and geographies - at Durham University. Fiona will be bringing her expertise and knowledge to Day 2 plenary session. Book now: buff.ly/01Qiu4M

You can read the joint statement at our website here: www.cycj.org.uk/news/cycj-an...

In response to recent tragic incidents of children and young people becoming involved with knife crime, CYCJ and Community Justice Scotland have published a short statement to help contextualise these events, and provide focus on the issues that matter.

Section 1 of our youth justice Practice Guide gives an overview of the legislative and policy background. Read it at our website here: www.cycj.org.uk/wp-content/u... #YouthJustice #PracticeGuide

Section 2 of the youth justice Practice Guide sets the scene for all the partner organisations that play a role in protecting children in Scotland. Read it here: buff.ly/VBpXUot

“Participation is not about giving young people a voice. They already have that. Participation is about letting children and young people’s voices have real weight.” More on supporting and encouraging young people to participate in our Practice Guide. Read it at our website here: buff.ly/VBpXUot

Section 5 of the youth justice Practice Guide provides an overview of the different causes and types of childhood adversity, aiming to raise awareness of its relevance to youth justice practice. Read it here: www.cycj.org.uk/resource/you...

Section 6 of our Practice Guide helps us understand the speech, language and communication needs that children and young people in conflict with the law may be experiencing. Head to our website now to access the full guide: buff.ly/VBpXUot

There’s only a few days left to apply to join team @cycjscotland.bsky.social 👇👇👇

Statistically, most crime in Scotland is committed by white heterosexual males. However, many children outside this group also encounter the justice system. Gain a deeper understanding of diversity in Section 7 of our Practice Guide. buff.ly/rkhlQfQ

Professionals working with children and young people in conflict with the law play a crucial role in mental health support. Their work in prevention, early intervention, and care planning can make a significant difference. Read more in our Practice Guide: www.cycj.org.uk/resource/you...

Since the implementation of Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) in 2006, the youth justice landscape has changed significantly. Section 9 of our Practice Guide covers key theories and methods for practitioners working with young people 👇 buff.ly/rkhlQfQ

What a brilliant 2 days at the #yjconf25. Thank you to everyone who presented, workshop hosts; esp the Wise Men, stall holders, chairs and to everyone who came to the conference 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Big shout out to team @CYCJScotland for all their hard work in making it such a success 🫶

📣 New job alert! 📣 Want to improve Scotland's response to children and young people in conflict with the law? We're looking for a creative and passionate expert to lead an ambitious strategy, making a real difference. 🔗 Apply here 👉 : lnkd.in/ef7iW66g 📆 Deadline: 29/06/2025

Amazing presentation by Carlene Firmin. We all need to embed contextual safeguarding in Scotland to keep our children safe

Thank you to @nataliedon-innes.bsky.social who has sent in her message to delegates to #YJConf25 - she shares her message about the progress we have made collectively in strengthening children’s rights, safeguarding and progressing the Promise Bill.

Welcome to all delegates from @fionadyer.bsky.social to Day 1 of #YJConf25 introducing today’s Chair John Trainer who will be guiding us through today’s programme.

It was a great privilege to deliver our workshop at the #JWC2025 in Madrid this morning. ☺️ With Ingun Fornes from the University of Bergen, we looked at reimagining detention of children in Scotland and Norway. Thank you to everyone who came along. #JusticeWithChildren #UNCRC

📣 Our evaluation of the Scottish Child Interview Model for Joint Investigative Interviewing is out now. Our research recognises the value of the Scottish Child Interview Model and we set out a series of recommendations for how it can be strengthened. Read the report here 👉https://buff.ly/jzpnjAt

Come and work with us 👇👇

Catch-up on the latest news and key issues from CYCJ and the wider youth justice world with our monthly e-bulletin mailchi.mp/strath.ac.uk...

Really looking forward to sharing developments in Scotland tomorrow 👇

Keynote speakers Professor @carlenefirmin.bsky.social & Dr Grace Robinson are joining us at #YJConf25, exploring contextual safeguarding and criminal exploitation of children. We are delighted to have speakers with such a depth of knowledge & expertise on these subjects joining us at #YJConf25

Made up of 17 sections that cover different themes it’s a vital tool to ensure practitioners have access to the latest policy, practice and legislation that impacts their work. It’s available at our website here and has a dedicated section covering mental health and neurodiversity: buff.ly/1mk9SO1

It’s #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek - this year’s theme is ‘community’. At CYCJ, we support communities of practitioners who work with children and young people in conflict with the law by publishing our Annual Practice Guide.

Listen to the latest episode of Creative Conversations with CYCJ. In episode 16, we’re joined by Stuart Allardyce, director of the Lucy Faithfull foundation who discusses children who display harmful sexual behaviour with Practice Development Advisor, Donna McEwan. Listen now: shorturl.at/fSDyR

We're hosting events sharing the learning from our Men Minds research - tickets are selling fast so book now! 27/05/25 - at Strathclyde University: buff.ly/mY6EJB9 04/06/25 - online: buff.ly/a4z1HdK Join us if you're interested in improving mental health policy, practice & research for young men

If you’d like to receive our E-Bulletin straight to your inbox, subscribe now: buff.ly/Hp6Eey5 This month's and previous editions can all be found here on the resources section of our website: buff.ly/MUchKU5

If you're interested in supporting children and young people in conflict with the law and policy and practice in this area, this is a must read! 👇

CYCJ are calling for an urgent rethink of proposals to suspend or remove the under-22 bus pass due to antisocial behaviour. We believe this would negatively impact young people in a number of ways and there is no evidence this would deter antisocial behaviour. Read our statement:

@cycjscotland.bsky.social director @fionadyer.bsky.social & Independent Working Group on Antisocial Behaviour co-chair Lorraine Gillies spoke to @1919magazine.bsky.social about the group’s findings. Read the opinion piece linked in the post below.👇

It was a busy April @cycjscotland.bsky.social

Read the report commissioned by the Independent Working Group on Antisocial behaviour ahead of our webinar tomorrow! This report aimed to provide an evidential review of antisocial behaviour in Scotland, and through a survey move towards an agreed definition of antisocial behaviour.

We need to act now to prevent and address antisocial behaviour 👇

Hear directly from the ASB working group 👇

We did it 💪🏻💪🏻

Our webinars are available to book now! We’ve got an excellent line up of topics including: 💡 Antisocial behaviour in Scotland 💡 Applying desistance thinking 💡 Neurodivergent children’s experiences in the youth justice system Tickets are going fast, so book your place now! shorturl.at/AYspU