Exploring experiences of frontline staff working in the children and young people's secure estate

Across the world, young people are detained in secure accommodation following criminal charge or remand. Young people in these settings can present with high risk, high harm and high vulnerability. The staff that work with them are required to support their emotional needs while enforcing security. Previous research has shown how emotionally challenging this work can be for frontline staff, with high risks of secondary trauma and burnout. This can result in high levels of staff turnover, impacting quality of care.

This narrative review aimed to answer the question: what are the experiences of non-clinical staff of working in secure, non-clinical forensic settings for young people? Utilising a systematic literature search, data were analysed from ten qualitative papers. Using thematic synthesis, the following themes were derived: Emotional Involvement of the Job, Importance of Relationships, Navigating Individual Differences and Effectiveness of the Institution. Staff highlighted the unpredictability of the work; the importance of working together for young people; the challenges of navigating differences in staff approach and young people’s characteristics; and the uncertainty of the usefulness of the institution. Results emphasise the complex and often difficult nature of working in the juvenile justice system and the high level of emotional labour required to manage this. This review is one of the first to explore non-clinical staff experience, adding to current understanding of working in these settings and emphasising the complexity of this work.

Support in the form of clinical supervision, compassionate leadership and reflective practice are suggested to enable the exploration of the emotional demand and social defences unconsciously implemented to manage these challenges. Future research could explore staff experience across secure accommodation for young people, exploring where there are similarities and differences in staff experience and what support is therefore needed.