In this episode, Communications and Engagement Advisor, Katya Allcott was joined by Fiona Dyer and CYCJ Associate Cedric Foussard to discuss the 5th World Congress on Justice with Children and advancing children's rights in Scotland and internationally.

Resources mentioned in this episode: CYCJ's world congress satellite event: https://www.cycj.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/CYCJ-Satellite-event-note.pdf Article for the Law Gazette: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/practice-points/the-three-pillars-of-child-centred-justice/5124589.article

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In this episode of Creative Conversations, Ranald McTaggart, Deputy Director of CYCJ, and Karen Suszek, Practice Development Advisor, sit down with Professor Clare Allely and Criminal Defence Attorney Elizabeth Kelly.

Together, they delve into key issues surrounding Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and the criminal justice sector. This episode was recorded at The University of Strathclyde on Wednesday 20th November, 2024.

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In this episode of Creative Conversations with CYCJ our focus is on Inclusion as Prevention (known as IAP). IAP is a partnership project between CYCJ, Dartington Service Design Lab, Action for Children and South Lanarkshire Council. Across 5 years the project has explored what happens when children and young people are involved in the design and delivery of services, alongside local authority partners, community groups and third sector organisations.

For this epsiode Rollo was joined by the following members of the project team: Project Mananger Janet Adams (South Lanarkshire Council), Engagement Coordinator Kiera Irvine (Action for Children) and Improvement Coordinator Nate Sheach (Dartington Service Design Lab). We also get the chance to hear from IAP participants Sarah and Niomi.

For more information on the work of Inclusion as Prevention head to https://inclusionasprevention.org.uk/ or https://www.cycj.org.uk/inclusion-as-prevention/

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In this episode, we are joined by three incredible guests: Dr Grace Robinson, Founder and CEO of Black Box Research & Consultancy, Jack Pippard, a Doctoral Researcher and Black Box employee, and Shelly Cathers, a Trainee Expert Witness with Black Box and PhD Researcher.

Grace, Jack, and Shelly delivered a lecture at the University of Strathclyde, focusing on the critical topic of Child Criminal Exploitation. During the lecture, attendees were invited to submit their questions, and in this podcast, we continue the conversation by addressing those questions and exploring the complex realities of exploitation that children and young people face.

Hosted by Donna McEwan, Practice Development Advisor at CYCJ, this episode offers valuable insights from leading experts and explores practical ways to tackle child criminal exploitation.

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In this episode, we are joined by Graeme Armstrong – a Times bestselling, multi-award-winning author from Airdrie.

Graeme's teenage years were spent within Scotland's 'young team' gang culture. But since then, he has studied English as an undergraduate at the University of Stirling, completed a Masters in Creative Writing, and is currently a PhD doctoral researcher at the University of Strathclyde.

His debut novel, 'The Young Team', was published in 2020 and is now being adapted for screen. It's fair to say that Graeme is a rising star, having written and presented documentaries for the BBC, being named one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists – a once-in-a-decade literary honour, and even appearing in British Vogue.

However, Graeme is still focused on using his past to fight for positive change – representing as he describes 'unrepresented voices'. Across Scotland and beyond, Graeme runs anti-violence outreach events in the community with young people and in the prison estate, he is an ambassador for The Hope Collective and an honorary lecturer at New College Lanarkshire.

Recently, Graeme delivered the Keynote at our National Youth Justice Conference, and he has just joined the CYCJ on our Associates Scheme.

In this episode, Graeme sits down with CYCJ Director, Fiona Dyer for a conversation about his lived experience of gang life, his thoughts on criminal justice, and what life is like for him now and what's next.

Please enjoy

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In this episode of Creative Conversations with CYCJ we were joined by Diana Johns, Associate Professor and Chair of Criminology in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Melbourne.

One of the newest members of the CYCJ Associates scheme, Diana's research is concerned with the experiences of marginalised or hard-to-reach groups, including young people who've been criminalised and/or imprisoned. Topics that we covered across this inspiring discusson include:

- The tension between idealism and pragmatism in the push to raise the Age of Criminal Responsibility in both Australia and Scotland. - What's meant by 'the abolitionist horizon of youth detention'. - What Diana has learned from her work with marginalised groups in Australia, including African Australian mothers and the Strong Grandmothers of the Central Desert - Urie Bronfenbrenner and the benefits of a social ecological approach to youth justice

NB: Unfortunately we encountered some technical difficulties briefly towards the end of this interview, with one of the microphones cuttiing out. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Relevant Links:

Johns, D, Williams, K & Haines, K (2017) Ecological Youth Justice: Understanding the social ecology of young people's prolific offending, Youth Justice, 17(1): 3-21. https://doi.org/10.1177/1473225416665611

Local Time by Sanne Oostermeijer and Matt Dwyer (2019) - a design guide for small-scale, local, community-embedded, therapeutic youth justice facilities: https://localtime264843868.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/localtime_designguide_v1-2.pdf

2 recent papers co-authored by Diana Johns about the Dutch model of small-scale local YJ facilities, which are based on relational security:

Oostermeijer, S, Souverein, F, Ross, S, Johns, D, van Domburgh, L, Popma, A, & Mulder, E (2023) The case for small-scale, community-integrated, therapeutic facilities: Utility and feasibility for policy transfer from the Dutch to the Victorian Youth Justice System. Journal of Criminology. https://doi.org/10.1177/26338076231193503

Souverein F, Oostermeijer S, Johns D, Ross S, van Domburgh L, Popma A & Mulder, E (2023) Small-scale community-integrated youth justice facilities: Lessons from Dutch reforms and recommendations for cross-jurisdictional implementation. The Prison Journal, 103(5): 679-701. https://doi.org/10.1177/00328855231200638

Sydney Morning Herald on The Strong Grandmomthers of the Central Desert: https://www.smh.com.au/interactive/2021/grandmas/ Empowering African Mothers: Ubuntu in Practice: https://www.crimeprevention.vic.gov.au/in-your-community-0/featured-projects/ubuntu-empowering-mothers-project

CYCJ Evaluation of Edinburgh Cotextual Safeguarding Pilot (Action for Children and City of Edniburgh Council): https://www.cycj.org.uk/news/cycj-publish-evaluation-of-edinburghs-contextual-safeguarding-pilot/

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In this episode, Donna McEwan, Practice Development Advisor at CYCJ was joined by Stuart Allardyce, director of the Lucy Faithfull Foundation.

Together they explore some of the complexities surrounding harmful sexual behaviour, delving into nuanced discussions about how we can understand what drives this, adaptations to existing risk assessments and addressing harmful sexual behaviour contextually.

Resources mentioned in this episode: Shore website: https://shorespace.org.uk/ Stop it now helpline: https://www.stopitnow.org.uk/helpline/

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In this episode, Communications and Engagement Advisor, Katya Allcott was joined by Fiona Dyer and Lorraine Gillies to discuss their work as co-chairs of the Independent Working Group on Antisocial Behaviour.

In this interview, Fiona and Lorraine share how the group was formed, how they conducted their research, and what needs to happen next to address antisocial behaviour in Scotland.

Resources mentioned in this episode: The Independent Working Group on Antisocial Behaviour review report: https://www.gov.scot/publications/report-independent-working-group-antisocial-behaviour/ CYCJ webinar recording: Hearing from the Independent Working Group on antisocial behaviour: https://www.cycj.org.uk/resource/cycj-webinar-antisocial-behaviour-in-scotland-hearing-from-the-independent-working-group/

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At the CYCJ's National Youth Justice Conference in June 2024, CYCJ Director Fiona Dyer hosted a discussion with keynote speaker Cédric Foussard.

An esteemed international expert in youth justice, Cédric serves as the coordinator of the Global Initiative on Justice with Children and Advocacy and as the Global Learning Senior Advisor for Terre des Hommes.

His influential work has significantly shaped global discourse and policies on child rights, particularly for children in conflict with the law.

For this episode of Creative Conversations with CYCJ our guest was the excellent Karyn McCluskey, Chief Executive of Community Justice Scotland. Across a relaxed conversation rich in ideas and expertise Fiona and Karyn explore:

- Youth Courts and problem-solving Sheriffs - The Youth Justice landscape in Scotland - Antisocial behaviour and the challenges facing children and young people today, including 'self-directed violence' - The Children's Care and Justice Bill, and Bail and Release Bill - The implementation gap, and why policy itself isn't always the issue - The transformational potential of Restorative Justice

This episode was recorded in late August 2023.

Relevant links:

- Karyn McCluskey Scotsman piece on the school violence summit and 'self-directed violence' amongst children and young people. - Karyn McCluskey and James Docherty join Darren McGarvey for his Common People podcast. - CYCJ Letter to ECYP Committee in Support of the Children's Care and Justice Bill - CYCJ on Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill - CYCJ Youth Court Blueprint - CYCJ Glasgow Youth Court report by Dr Aaron Brown and Dr Nina Vaswani

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