Young people and crime! Probably two of the most volatile issues in Britain today, and among the most widely misunderstood. Did you know that in England and Wales we lock up more children and young people than almost any other country in Europe? Is that because we have some of the worst behaved and most criminal young people in Europe? Or is it because we deal with them differently? It makes you wonder, are young people victims or villains? Little angels or little devils?
Perhaps it’s time you took a closer look.
If you study youth justice with The Open University that is just what you will do. To get an idea of the issues take a quick look at this 10 minute clip from the film ‘Made In Britain’. We use this clip in one of our courses as a starting point for examining how the youth justice system works with young people. Filmed in the 1980s, it shows how some things have changed and how some have not:
The youth justice courses use all kinds of media, printed learning guides, books and online learning activities to lead you through the different subject areas. We mix face-to-face tuition at day schools and tutorials with online forums, all supported by your own regionally-based tutor. The Open University pioneered this kind of distance learning and no-one does it better. You will get access to the vast resources of The Open University library and loads of support is available. You also get to use special learning tools called Professional Development Resources, designed by The Open University for the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales and Ministry of Justice. These are used by youth justice practitioners and combine video, audio and interactive animations around specific youth justice topics.
If you study youth justice with The Open University you can discover how and why Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) were set up in England and Wales. You will find out how they do things differently in Scotland, what they do with young people who offend in Northern Ireland. You will explore why there are so many ways of responding to children who offend, and most importantly of all, how you can be a part of it.
The Foundation Degree in Youth Justice (England and Wales) is made up of four separate courses. Whether you work with young people or are just interested in how society deals with crime, The Open University’s youth justice courses can open doors for you and help you into work in this fascinating and constantly changing arena.