INVISIBILISED REPORT
Invisibilised: Girls caught up in, or at risk of, crime
Why This Report?
Girls in the youth justice system are a small but highly vulnerable group whose needs are often overlooked. As of January 2025, they made up 15% of the Youth Justice System caseload, 2% of the secure estate (9 girls vs. 515 boys), and over a quarter of those in alternative provision, with 52% of girls in custody having been in care.
Services are largely designed for boys, leaving girls, especially those of colour or with care experience, without tailored, trauma-informed support. Language such as “vulnerable” or “troubled” shifts blame onto individuals rather than addressing systemic causes like trauma, exploitation, and coercion.
Despite growing recognition, research and gender-specific interventions remain limited. Professionals report girls are routinely deprioritised and retraumatised by practices built around boys.
Following Susannah Hancock’s 2025 review calling for reform, SHiFT has analysed girls’ lived experiences, practitioner insights, and data to surface key themes and drive change, within our own work and across the wider system.
52% of girls in custody have been in care.
Above all, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the girls, their parents and carers, their SHiFT Guides, other dedicated professionals, colleagues, and researchers who shared their time, experiences, expertise, and trust, in contributing to this work. Your voices have shaped this report and its recommendations, and they must shape the future of policy and practice.
Every conversation I engaged in throughout developing and writing this report deepened my understanding, challenged my own biases, and strengthened my commitment to changing outcomes alongside the girls in these systems. Policy and practice must, and can, evolve to better support this invisibilised group.
To truly improve the situation, we must learn from past mistakes, explore alternative models for solutions, and, most importantly, recognise that girls themselves hold both the knowledge of the issues and the key to meaningful change.
Ella Armstrong, Learning and Insights Lead
We absolutely welcome your feedback, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via info@shiftuk.org or directly with Ella Armstrong, at ella.armstrong@shiftuk.org
We would also greatly value your amplification, conversation, and sharing to help ensure this crucial issue gets the attention it deserves.
To support SHiFT’s work going forward, you can:
→ Share and incorporate the findings in your own work.
→ Sign up to our quarterly newsletter to stay informed.
→ Tag us and follow SHiFT on LinkedIn to join the conversation.
→ Or continue the conversation directly with our Chief Executive, Dr Amy Ludlow, at amy.ludlow@shiftuk.org