This project looks at the lived experiences of young people in youth custody in Ireland. The study takes a Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) approach, meaning young people are actively involved in shaping the research rather than just being participants. The research will involve working directly with young people currently residing in a youth detention facility to co-design interview questions, ensuring the study reflects their perspectives and lived experiences. In the analysis phase, there will be collaboration with justice-involved youth, young people with lived experience of the justice system, who will play a key role in interpreting the data using Participatory Theme Elicitation (PTE). This method ensures that the voices of justice-experienced youth shape how the findings are understood and presented, challenging traditional researcher-led interpretations.