Conference notes:

1. Trespass is, in effect, a criminal offence as anyone who is in a trespassory assembly which fails to comply with a police request will be committing a criminal offence and the police have powers to enforce five mile exclusion zones around alleged sites for such assemblies.
2. Where an area has been specially designated under section 132 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 no person may protest in that area. A designated area includes the area around Parliament.
3. There is an offence of aggravated trespass, defined as intimidating or disrupting lawful activity in the open air. The police are able to arrest you, without a warrant, if they suspect that you are, have, or are able to commit this offence.
4. Trespass has been a civil offence for over 800 years and the government is now considering changing this.
5. That the juvenile offenders that the Government wants to incarcerate in new "secure units" are currently aged 14 or less.
6. The estimated costs of keeping a juvenile offender in a secure unit will be over £2000 per week.
7. That if juvenile offenders are given opportunities for training and rehabilitation, the incidence of re-offending is greatly reduced.
8. The cuts in central and local Government funding to the Youth Service, youth projects and voluntary organisations, which have greatly reduced the ability of these organisations to carry out their work.

Conference believes that:

1. The measures in notes 1-4 represent a serious attack on civil liberties and put far too much power in the hands of the Government, the police and the wealthy and removes power from the poor, the needy and the homeless.
2. That all citizens should have equal access to the law, regardless of age.
3. That the effects of government policies on housing, social welfare, health and education have had a direct bearing on the increase of crime generally, and particularly amongst juveniles.
4. That custodial sentences in secure units should only be used as a last resort for persistent or violent offenders.
5. That secure units should place an emphasis on caring and education and rehabilitation, not merely on enforcing discipline.
6. That alternatives to custodial sentences, such as community service and rehabilitation, should be tried as much as possible.

Conference resolves:

2. To actively oppose the measures in notes 1-4 and work to repeal them.
3. To be prepared to work with other groups which oppose the measures in notes 1-4 and form a united front on this issue, and as part of this approach other groups opposed to these measures to develop and implement a joint strategy for stopping them.

Conference calls for

1. The LDYS Executive to ensure that Conference Resolves 1 and 2 are put into action.
2. The powers of the juvenile courts to be extended so that juveniles may be tried there for any and all crimes of which they stand accused.
3. An increase in government funding for the Youth Services, which in turn fund many of the voluntary organisations which provide support and leisure activities for young people.
4. Social Services to be empowered to investigate the home environment of juvenile offenders, to identify and tackle any factors which lead to increased cases of crime amongst those under the age of 16.