What is a Referral Order?
In most cases, anyone aged 10 – 17 who appears in Court for the first time and pleads guilty to an offence, will be made subject to a Referral Order. The length of a Referral Order can vary from 3 to 12 months, depending on the seriousness of the offence. The Court decides the length of the Order and you are then referred to a Referral Order Panel, which will agree the work you are to do. The aims of the Referral Order are:-
1. Allow you to hear about the impact of the offence on the victim.
2. Help you take responsibility for your behaviour.
3. Agree what you need to do to put things right.
4. Decide the best way to prevent you offending in the future.
5. See how you, your family and friends can support any changes you need to make.
6. Help you make positive decisions about your future.
What happens after Court ?
A member of the Youth Offending Team (YOT) will meet you to discuss your offence and write a report about it, also including your needs and interests. A Referral Order Panel will then be arranged and we will write to you with the date and time.
Bath and North East Somerset Youth Offending Team have policies in place regarding confidentiality and information sharing and about making a complaint if you are not happy with the service you receive. These will be discussed with you at your first meeting with the Youth Offending Team, when you will also be asked to sign an agreement about your responsibilities whilst on a Referral Order.
What is a Referral Order Panel?
The Referral Order Panel includes two volunteers who live in your area and a member of the Youth Offending Team. The person you harmed will also be asked to come, or to send someone else to represent them, to let you know how they have been affected by your actions. The victim and you will both have an opportunity to talk about the offence and its effects. It may be that you, your friends or family have also been hurt by your actions.
The Referral Order Panel will discuss with you and your family how you can ‘make amends’ for the harm you have caused and what you can do to avoid re-offending. Out of these discussions will come a contract which outlines the agreed action to be taken.
If agreement cannot be reached, a second meeting will be held. Exceptionally, if agreement cannot be reached at a third meeting, then you would be referred back to Court.
What is the Contract?
The contract is a written agreement between you and the Referral Order Panel. It will say how you can make amends for your offence. It will include activities to help you stop offending in the future, for example, returning to school or addressing any misuse of alcohol or drugs. You and your parents will be asked to sign the contract. The Referral Order begins on the date the contract is signed rather than when the Order was imposed by the Court.
You will then meet with a worker from the Youth Offending Team on a regular basis and they will help you to successfully complete your Referral Order. You will be expected to attend all appointments. Every three months you must attend a review meeting with the Referral Order Panel to see how you are getting on.
If you do not comply with the contract, a Breach Meeting will be called to decide if you should go back to Court for re-sentencing.
At the end of the Order
When you have successfully completed the Referral Order, your conviction will be ‘spent’. This means you do not have to declare it when applying for most jobs. If you re-offend, the Referral Order will be taken into account by the Court when sentencing.
If you have any questions or would like any further information, please contact:
Bath and North East Somerset
Youth Offending Team
12 Charlotte Street
BATH
BA1 2NE
Tel: 01225 396966
OFFICE HOURS
Monday – Thursday
8.30am – 5.00pm
Friday
8.30am – 4.30pm
THIS INFORMATION CAN BE MADE AVAILABLE IN BRAILLE, ON TAPE AND IN OTHER LANGUAGES, UPON REQUEST
Working in partnership to prevent youth offending