Increase in number of children in prison

Well done Barnardo’s for drawing attention to the scandalous increase in the number of children being sent to penal custody.  If anything the charity has been too cautious in its recommendations.  It was only a few years ago that there was just a handful of children aged between 12 and 14 in custody at any one time and now there are several hundred. I don’t believe that it is children that have changed, it is the way we respond to them and the systems we put in place.  Barnardo’s is right that these are almost entirely children who require concerted intervention and family support. A short stretch in a privately run prison and then put straight back where they came from is leading to total failure and guaranteeing a career of crime.  These are children first. 

Our campaign “Growing up Shut up” focussing on children in custody has already had some successes. Hardly any children on release from prison are now dumped in bed and breakfast accommodation. We forced the government to issue new instructions to every local authority to ensure they treat children asking for housing as potentially a child in need. And most importantly, we encourage charities, government and the media to treat children as individuals and to see the child behind the crime – we must separate the action from the person.

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August 13, 2009  Tags: , , ,   Posted in: Children and young people, Howard League, Prisons, Sentencing

2 Responses

  1. Tim Connolly - August 13, 2009

    Somewhat worrying that the government seems determined to continue the penal hyperactivity, even against unified opposition from just about all the relevant stakeholders…

    It’s very easy for the MoJ to make facile statements to the BBC about young people being ‘…given the chance to get back on the right path and make a positive contribution to their communities.’ but apparently rather harder for them to respond coherently to the opportunity presented by restorative justice.

  2. Eugene Grant - August 13, 2009

    The situation of children in prison in Britain is deplorable. The Barnardo’s Report is welcome indeed, but its results, while regrettable, are hardly surprising.

    For children and young people, prison isn’t a suitable place; prison isn’t a safe place. Nor is it an effective means of cutting crime.

    Children in custody – many of whom have experienced sexual or physical abuse, or neglect – are exposed to high levels of violence, abuse, intimidation and bullying. Many young people leave prison much more damaged and a greater risk to themselves and to their community. As a campaigner for the Howard League for Penal Reform, I believe there is an immediate need for a new approach – one which seeks to engage with children’s needs and not just punish them for their crimes.

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