If you’ve made some mistakes in life or done things you wish you could take back, you still have a lot to offer the world – and yourself. And there is help out there for you too.
What is a young offender?
A young offender is a young person aged 10-17 who has been convicted or cautioned for a criminal offence. If you’re under 10 you are classed in law as a child in the UK (or under 12 in Scotland). If you’re 18 or over you are classed as an adult. You won’t be tried in court as an adult but you could still end up in custody at a youth offending institution, and even a caution will remain on a child’s criminal record – plus you might be referred to a Youth Offending Team (YOT) who will work with you to help prevent you from re-offending.
No-one wants a constrictive label stuck on them. Even if you have been given the label of ‘young offender’, it’s your life and you have the basic human right to change and grow beyond any label that society gives you.
Building career confidence as a young offender
You deserve to have these barriers removed so you can gain work skills, knowledge and importantly confidence.
Do you need to tell college, university or employers about your criminal record?
- conviction you got at court
- caution you got from the police
There are different rules in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
You only need tell the employer, university or college about a conviction or caution:
- if they ask you to, for example in an interview or on an application form
- for a specific amount of time after you got it, or always for certain roles
Activity: Think about a situation in your past
Think about the last time someone important to you did something potentially dangerous that you didn’t agree with.
- How did you act?
- Did you speak up?
- Are you happy with the way you behaved? Why?
- Do you wish you’d done something differently? Why?
Ask yourself what you learned from the situation and how you can put it into practice next time a friend or group of friends starts doing something that makes you uncomfortable.
