COUNTY Durham’s Youth Offending Service has been highly commended at a national awards ceremony.
The service was singled out for praise in the Speech Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) Innovation Award category at the Shine a Light Awards in London.
National research suggests 60 to 90 per cent of young people in the youth justice system have communication difficulties.
Keen to address this, County Durham’s Youth Offending Service has worked closely with a speech and language therapist since March 2014 and staff have been trained how to identify warning signs.
The service has also made its initial assessment process less formal and more interactive.
The Shine a Light Awards is a national scheme organised by Pearson, in partnership with The Communication Trust to celebrate innovative work and excellent practice in supporting children and young people’s communication development.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here