be poor. Many in-cell toilets lacked lids and had no appropriate screening, resulting in bacteria from the toilet being sprayed into the cell when the toilet was flushed. This was of particular concern for prisoners who were forced to eat in their cell in close proximity to toilets. Prisoners fashioned improvised toilet lids from cardboard, wooden boards, pillowcases or food trays. Prisoners complained of the humiliation and lack of dignity in having to defecate feet away from their cellmate on an unscreened toilet. The report concludes with a number of recommendations on overcrowding, liv- ing space per prisoner and the physical conditions and facilities appropriate for everyday life in cells. The whole report is well worth reading and will give practi- tioners an idea of the challenges that their clients will face in custody and which may affect their ability to engage with rehabilitative activities. Life in Prison: Living Conditions A findings paper by HM Inspectorate of Prisons (October 2017) is available in full at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/ hmiprisons/inspections/life-in-prison-living-conditions/ Mark Harvey National Probation Service (NW) Thematic inspection of YOTs and public protection Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) are multi-agency partnerships, comprising police, probation, local authority social care and education, and health services. There are 152 YOTs in England and Wales, supervising 10 to 18-year-olds who have been sentenced in court, and those deemed at risk of offending. YOTs also work with victims. YOTs use a comprehensive assessment and risk and vulnerability assess- ment tool called Asset Plus, which is the youth justice equivalent of the probation OASys assessment tool. In all, 115 cases were inspected of young people who had committed violent or sexual offences, or where other public protection risks had been identified. Of these, 81 per cent had experienced trauma and 41 per cent had witnessed or committed domestic abuse. Common experiences of trauma were: separation and estrangement from parents, death of a parent or carer, sexual abuse, severe physical chastisement, repeat domestic abuse and parental substance misuse. For some young people their experiences of trauma were multiple and severe. Almost half of the sample was in care, with many in placements far from home. YOT workers were often taking these experiences into account and focusing on relationship-building, but using their initiative rather than being supported to do so by structures and resources. Only a handful of YOTs were already using a trauma- informed practice model. The traumatic background of the young people was recognized by the Inspectorate, who recommended that all YOTs move to a trauma- informed delivery model and that this approach should inform interventions. 102 Probation Journal 65(1)