Examining the Literacy Abilities of Young People With Language Difficulties Who Are Serving Community Orders Within the Youth Justice Service

Language and literacy difficulties are prevalent in young people involved in youth justice services (YJS). Given the known importance of language for literacy development, few studies have examined the literacy abilities of young people involved in YJS who have language difficulties. The writing abilities of this population have yet to be examined despite their importance for participation in restorative justice. This study examined the word reading, spelling, reading comprehension and expository writing abilities of 48 young people aged between 12 and 18 years involved in YJS who were on community orders and identified as having language difficulties. The young people scored −1SD below all subtest norms and displayed extremely low abilities on the writing subtest. Young people known to YJS should be screened for potential language and literacy difficulties to support their access to interventions aimed at reducing recidivism.