The Kilbrandon ethos in practice : the antinomy of care and conduct in the children's hearings system : an investigation into the characteristically unitary nature of the Scottish system of children's hearings

This thesis investigates the characteristically unitary nature of the children's hearings system ("CHS") by reference to legal process and decision-making practice. It argues that it is possible to distil from the system's constitutional document, the Kilbrandon Report, a general philosophy (herein termed the "Kilbrandon ethos") which should, in principle, underlie the current practice of the CHS. Broadly, this ethos rests on the unitary nature of the system, which involves dealing with all children "in trouble" alike, procedurally and philosophically, whether it is their own actions or those of others that bring them to the attention of the system's gatekeepers.;The thesis argues that it follows from the Kilbrandon ethos that all children referred to children's reporters ("reporters"), and by reporters to children's hearings, ought to be dealt with in a similar manner, irrespective of the reason for which they are referred, and thereby explores whether differences in process and decision-making practice apply to different "types" of referral. Bringing together juvenile justice theory, original archival research, doctrinal analysis, classification theory, and the findings of an empirical study on reporter decision-making, the thesis contends that, while the Kilbrandon ethos has proved remarkably resilient, there are, nevertheless, indications that grounds of referral are not entirely interchangeable as access points to the CHS.;In particular, it finds that referrals based on the offence ground and, more broadly, referrals based on grounds relating to the child's conduct, are dealt with differently from referrals based on care and protection grounds. The thesis considers the implications of such differences in approach and explores possible responses to bolster the Kilbrandon ethos in practice.This thesis investigates the characteristically unitary nature of the children's hearings system ("CHS") by reference to legal process and decision-making practice. It argues that it is possible to distil from the system's constitutional document, the Kilbrandon Report, a general philosophy (herein termed the "Kilbrandon ethos") which should, in principle, underlie the current practice of the CHS. Broadly, this ethos rests on the unitary nature of the system, which involves dealing with all children "in trouble" alike, procedurally and philosophically, whether it is their own actions or those of others that bring them to the attention of the system's gatekeepers.;The thesis argues that it follows from the Kilbrandon ethos that all children referred to children's reporters ("reporters"), and by reporters to children's hearings, ought to be dealt with in a similar manner, irrespective of the reason for which they are referred, and thereby explores whether differences in process and decision-making practice apply to different "types" of referral. Bringing together juvenile justice theory, original archival research, doctrinal analysis, classification theory, and the findings of an empirical study on reporter decision-making, the thesis contends that, while the Kilbrandon ethos has proved remarkably resilient, there are, nevertheless, indications that grounds of referral are not entirely interchangeable as access points to the CHS.;In particular, it finds that referrals based on the offence ground and, more broadly, referrals based on grounds relating to the child's conduct, are dealt with differently from referrals based on care and protection grounds. The thesis considers the implications of such differences in approach and explores possible responses to bolster the Kilbrandon ethos in practice

Creating whanaungatanga: Kaupapa Maori support in the Psychology Department at the University of Waikato

Attendance at university has been recognized by some as a competitive environment that does not cater for the co-operative philosophy followed by many Maori. Within the Psychology Department at the University of Waikato there have been efforts since the Departments early days to place emphasis on the Maori cultural experience, but there were few Maori students and no Maori staff back then. Now, in 2004, the Department has a team of Maori staff and courses with Maori content at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Yet the environment that the students move in is still competitive. Grades are based on individual assessment through undergraduate level. At graduate level the emphasis on group dynamics comes to the fore. The availability and accessibility of Maori staff at different levels in a Kaupapa Maori programme provides one of the strategies of support for maori students at Waikato. This paper discusses the issues around managing, delivering and providing opportunities so that Maori students studying psychology feel supported for the duration of their time at Waikato University

A Tripartite Analysis of the Grounds of Referral to Children's Hearings

This article is concerned with the grounds of referral to the children's hearings system: Scotland's integrated juvenile care and justice system. The article posits a tripartite analysis of the grounds upon which children can be referred to hearings and, in so doing, rejects the traditional dualism between "offence" and "care and protection" grounds. Drawing upon empirical research, the article identifies three categories of grounds in current practice, namely: "care and protection", "conduct" and "offence". Qualitative data is presented in support of this original tripartite classification, which highlights the role of age in influencing the appropriate category of ground and suggests that children move through the different categories over time. The article concludes by exploring the practical significance of the tripartite nature of the grounds of referral and argues that increased use of diversion could prevent children from progressing through the three categories over time

Scottish Youth Justice and the Legacy of Kilbrandon: a provocation paper

First paragraph: Although consolidated under the same political union, the four nations of the United Kingdom take different legal approaches in response to youth offending. Scotland has, since the 1970s, followed a distinctly welfare-based approach through its unique tribunal system of children’s hearings: where decisions are made in the best interests of children who commit criminal offences.[i] The children’s hearings system (CHS) was established on the basis of the Kilbrandon Report[ii], which remains influential to its current operation. The Report determined that all children in need of compulsory state intervention, for whatever reason, should be subject to the same system and treated on the same welfare basis, in light of common adversities, circumstances and (unmet) needs. The wisdom of Kilbrandon in this regard has since been vindicated by a wealth of empirical evidence on the lived experience of children subject to state intervention, which confirms the links between adversity, vulnerability, and offending behaviour.[iii] Although the Kilbrandon Report has a lasting legacy in Scots law and policy, not all children enjoy similar treatment in practice. There are contradictions in approach towards some children, particularly those who offend. This provocation paper explores the uniquely Scottish approach to youth justice by reflecting on the legacy of Kilbrandon and highlighting inconsistencies towards the treatment of some children who come into contact with the Scottish youth justice system. It concludes by arguing that the identified contradictions could be resolved by raising the age of criminal responsibility to the cusp of adulthood

Research Briefing : A Study on Children's Reporter Decision-Making

Briefing prepared for the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration to share key findings from a qualitative study of reporter decision making

The relationship between compliance and compulsion, and dynamics of diversion, in child welfare decision making

This article explores the relationship between (parental) compliance and (child) compulsion, within the wider dynamics of diversion, in child welfare decision making. It examines how notions of parental compliance can be used by decision makers to distinguish between compulsory and voluntary forms of state intervention in children's and families' lives. The article focusses on Scotland as a case study by drawing on empirical findings from a qualitative investigation into gatekeeping decision making in the children's hearings system, which found that notions of parental compliance are significant to decisions about whether to bring children within the statutory child protection system in practice. Key findings on parental cooperation, engagement and acceptance are conceptualised as forms of 'compliance', linked to the existing international evidence base, and analysed in terms of state power and coercion, parental stigma and resistance in child protection processes. The relationship between parental compliance and child compulsion is scrutinised, in light of the procedural peculiarities of the Scottish system and wider proliferation of diversionary strategies aimed at reducing the numbers of children being drawn into formal child protection processes. The conclusion is that positive parental compliance may support diversion from involuntary child protection processes but there should be limits to reliance on negative conceptions of non-compliance to support direction into the statutory system

The Role of the Safeguarder in the Children's Hearings System

1.1 Background In 2013, under the auspices of the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’) responsibility for safeguarder recruitment, appointment and administration was transferred from local authorities to the Scottish Ministers and a national voluntary organisation, Children 1st, was contracted to set up and administer a national Safeguarders Panel. In September 2016, the Scottish Government commissioned the University of Strathclyde to undertake this study to understand the role of the safeguarder in the children’s hearings system. There have been two such previous studies: The Role of the Safeguarder in Scotland (Hill et al, 2000) and Safeguarders Research (Gadda et al, 2015). As in the 2000 study, the current research team was able to conduct interviews with sheriffs and to include them in the data collected through a questionnaire, thereby offering some further information on the safeguarder role in court proceedings. This current project has also been able to consider some aspects of the framework put in place by Children 1st to promote consistency and quality in performance of the role. There is little academic discussion of the role though it is covered by Sutherland (2008: 10-026 - 10-028) and by Norrie (2013: 2-21 – 2-33). The Scottish Government has also published Practice Notes on the Role of the Safeguarder (Scottish Government, 2016) which is a comprehensive statement, for safeguarders themselves, of the work which they should undertake. In implementing this, together with the statement on the Practice Standards for Safeguarders (Scottish Government, 2015), Children 1st has done much to ensure that the context in which safeguarders operate is clearly defined. 1.2 Aims and Objectives of the Research The aims of the research were as follows: 1. “to identify and quantify the added value that safeguarders bring to decisions relating to children and young people in children’s hearings proceedings from the perspective of practitioners and professionals (including safeguarders themselves); and 2. to inform future development and support requirements for the role of safeguarder within the children’s hearings system through delivering an understanding of how the role of a safeguarder is perceived in practice and how the role impacts on decision-making, both positively and negatively”. The research questions were: to explore how the current system of safeguarders operates, and is managed, from all agency perspectives; to elicit safeguarder and other agency perspectives of the role and effectiveness of safeguarders and how that role interacts/overlaps with other key roles in the children’s hearings system; to identify the skills and qualifications deemed essential to the effectiveness of the safeguarder role; and to identify the type and extent of management, support and training needs currently in place and potentially required to ensure the future effectiveness of the safeguarder role and safeguarder panel. In this report, Chapter 2 describes the methods used and outlines the demographics of the various respondents who participated in the fieldwork. Chapters 3 – 6 present findings, with some discussion at the end of each. Chapter 3 offers an understanding of how the safeguarder role is conceived in practice. Chapter 4 examines the reasons for appointment of safeguarders as part of its exploration of how the current system of safeguarding operates and ways in which the role impacts on decision-making. Chapter 5 continues this exploration from all agency perspectives through an examination of the work which safeguarders actually undertake including investigation, reporting and recommendations, and views of stakeholders on aspects of this. It also looks specifically at the structure, content and quality of safeguarder reports (by comparison also with social work reports). Chapter 6 explores stakeholder views on administration of the current system for safeguarders and also identifies skills and qualifications required for fulfilment of the role of safeguarder and safeguarders’ management, support and training needs. The final Chapter, Chapter 7, provides further analysis of the findings including in relation to the effectiveness and added value of safeguarders

¿DÓNDE DUERMEN LAS AVES? OBSERVACIONES DE AVES DESCANSANDO EN EL SOTOBOSQUE DE LAS TIERRAS BAJAS DE COSTA RICA

El uso del hábitat nocturno de las aves diurnas es poco conocido. Este estudio presenta observaciones de los sitios de descanso y comportamiento nocturnal de 18 especies de aves en el sotobosque de las tierras bajas de Costa Rica. Realizamos muestreos nocturnos en hábitats riparios y no-riparios en potreros, bosques secundarios y bosques maduros. Observamos un mayor número de aves posadas en hábitats riparios (67) que en hábitats no riparios (3). El sotobosque ripario es utilizado por un grupo diverso de especies de aves como dormidero. Nuestras observaciones resaltan la importancia de corredores riparios, especialmente en hábitats alterados por el ser humano como los potreros

A study of the 2A region of aphthoviruses

The proteins encoded by foot-and-mouth disease virus are expressed in the form of a polyprotein, which is processed by virus-encoded proteases to yield the mature viral proteins. The focus of this thesis is the 18 amino acid 2A region of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), which is (together with the first proline residue of 2B) capable of mediating a primary cleavage at its own carboxy-terminus, between the structural and replicative viral proteins. It was proposed that the 2A region performed this event via a novel proteolytic mechanism. Vectors encoding the FMDV 2A region, in frame, between two foreign gene sequences were constructed to allow the 2A region to be investigated in isolation from the rest of the virus proteins using in vitro translation systems. Detailed quantitative densitometric analyses of the translation products were carried out, which suggested non-stoichiometric expression of the two cleavage products. Single and multiple site-directed mutations were made to the 2A sequence and the activities of the resultant 2A regions determined to establish the identity of functional amino acid residues. The effect of the surrounding foreign protein sequence and the inclusion of progressively longer wild-type sequences prior to 2A was also examined. The carboxy-termini of cardiovirus 2A regions show significant sequence similarity to the FMDV 2A region and are known to mediate a similar primary cleavage. The cleavage activities of the carboxy-termini of cardiovirus 2A regions were compared to that of the FMDV 2A region and found to equally capable of mediating cleavage. The activity of FMDV 2A region was tested in prokaryotes and was found to be inactive. These studies indicated that the 2A cleavage was not a proteolytic cleavage, but more likely a translational effect. A new model for 2A-mediated activity is presented