Trauma-Informed Care in a Youth Justice Setting: A Qualitative Study of Staff and Service-User Experiences

Background: The impact of complex trauma on justice-involved youth is increasingly acknowledged, highlighting a need for Trauma Informed Care (TIC) initiatives in youth justice (YJ) settings. However, the evidence base on TIC implementation in such settings remains limited, and there is currently no published UK research. Aims: We sought to qualitatively explore the experiences of staff, young people, and families involved with a local YJS in the East of England which had recently implemented a TIC initiative - the Trauma Recovery Model. We aimed to identify facilitators and benefits of TIC, and any challenges or barriers to its implementation. Method: Staff, youth, and families were recruited purposively via email and/or identified through local research collaborators and YJS case workers. Participants were interviewed remotely following a semi-structured interview guide. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results: We conducted 23 interviews, comprised of staff (n=19) from a range of professional backgrounds, youth (n=3), and parent (n=1) participants. Themes derived from our analyses demonstrated several benefits of TIC implementation, with relational improvements between staff and youth particularly highlighted. Clinical supervision and oversight were considered crucial to TIC success, as both a facilitator of trauma informed practice and a resource for staff who required reflexive and safe relational support. Whilst TIC implementation within the service was widely well- received, staff expressed some ambivalence about its application in justice organisations and identified several structural, systemic, and individual barriers to its long-term success. Conclusions: Findings suggest that TIC can be implemented in UK settings serving justice-involved youth, which is promising. Results highlight some unique considerations for the delivery of TIC in YJ contexts, indicating that TIC in such settings will need to be conceptualised and operationalised slightly differently. Further rigorous and co-produced research investigating TIC across a range of YJ settings is needed.