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Young adult offenders should not be sentenced to custody in all but the most serious cases, a report this week recommended.

The system is failing "at huge expense to the taxpayer", claims the independent commission set up by the Barrow Cadbury Trust, which says that nearly three-quarters of 18 -20 year olds are reconvicted after release from prison. Treating this group as mature adults "fast-tracks their criminal careers", it says.

The commission, set up in 2004, suggests that the youth and adult criminal justice systems be merged and that provision should be tailored on the basis of individual need.

It also recommends that local "transition to adult" teams should be set up to ensure the needs of young adult offenders are met.

Lost in Transition from www.bctrust.org.uk