An Analysis of Offending by Young People Looked After by Local Authorities
| Date | 01 August 2008 |
| Author | Laura Caulfield,Iain Darker,Harriet Ward |
| DOI | 10.1177/1473225408091374 |
| Published date | 01 August 2008 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
ARTICLE
Copyright © 2008 The National Association for Youth Justice
Published by SAGE Publications (Los Angeles, London, New Delhi and Singapore)
www.sagepublications.com
ISSN 1473–2254, Vol 8(2): 134–148
DOI: 10.1177/1473225408091374
An Analysis of Offending by Young People Looked
After by Local Authorities
Iain Darker, Harriet Ward and Laura Caulfi eld
Correspondence: Professor Harriet Ward, Centre for Child and Family Research,
Department of Social Sciences, Loughborough University LE11 3TU, UK.
Email: H.Ward@lboro.ac.uk
Abstract
The association between local authority care and offending behaviour was examined in 250
looked after young people of the age of criminal responsibility. Whilst a greater number of the
young people had committed offences than in the general population, the vast majority were
law abiding. For those who did offend, the care episode itself was unlikely to have been the sole
cause of their delinquency. The fi ndings suggest that the services offered once the young people
entered local authority care did not succeed in combating established offending behaviour.
Perhaps initiatives targeted in the community prior to entry to care may be more effective.
Keywords: local authority care, looked after children and young people, offending, prevention
Introduction
Over the last 25 years or so, research on the development of offending behaviour has advanced
hugely. The focus has been upon the existence of specifi c risk factors that may result in
criminality. Multiple risk factors have been identifi ed, predominantly grounded in individual,
familial, and community variables (Youth Justice Board, 2001; Farrington, 2002). Whilst these
factors have been well established in both research and practice, far less is known about the
causal mechanisms linking them to offending behaviour and it is extremely unlikely that single
risk factors lead directly to any individual offending. Instead, multiple risk factors are typically
apparent, many of which are highly inter-related, making cause and effect diffi cult to establish.
However, even where many risk factors are present, it is important to note that prospective pre-
diction tends to be poor, and that many children and young people at risk do not offend and do
lead successful lives. Retrospective prediction, however, is much more reliable, with those who
do offend typically having histories of multiple risk factors. Furthermore, retrospectively the
likelihood of becoming a persistent offender increases with the number of risk factors, almost
irrespective of the specifi c issues that are involved (Farrington, 2001, 2002).
For children and young people at risk, life-course transitions and turning points are very im-
portant infl uences on the development of offending and antisocial behaviour (Farrington, 2002).
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