Children in trouble with the law
In our Locking Up or Giving Up briefings, we are calling for a reduction in the use of custody for 12, 13 and 14 year olds in the UK.
The level of violent crime by this age group has remained consistently low for the last decade, yet the number sentenced to custody nowadays is five times more than it was a decade ago. 513 children aged 14 and under were locked up last year.
Changes in legislation - particularly the introduction of the Detention and Training Order (DTO) in 2000 - has made it easier for courts to sentence 12, 13 and 14 year olds to custody, rather than giving them community sentences.
We are calling for:
- strict sentencing rules which reflect the intention of Parliament and Government so that children under 15 cannot be considered for custody unless they have committed a serious offence and are a persistent offender; combined with;
- a clear definition of persistency.
- a breach of a community based sentence never to result in a custodial sentence for a child aged under 15 unless there is a serious or violent offence;
- a requirement in national standards for YOTs to support children to comply with conditions of community orders;
- guidance instructing courts to seek out additional information about factors that may influence sentencing – such as abuse, or special educational needs;
- the Government to take the steps necessary to implement Part 3, Section 34 of the Off ender Management Act 2007 which allows children serving a DTO to be placed elsewhere than in the secure estate.
Our 2009 report Locking Up or Giving Up: Why custody thresholds for teenagers aged 12, 13 and 14 need to be raised analysed the cases of 214 of the 465 children aged 12-14 who were sentenced to a DTO in 2007/8.
We demonstrated that
- The Government’s intention that custody should only be used as a measure of ‘last resort’ is not put into practice.
- 35% of the sample we analysed did not meet the criteria for custody and 22% of them were sent to custody for breaching a community penalty such as a supervision order or anti social behaviour order.
- Half of the children in our sample had experienced some form of abuse, 22% were living in care and 8% had attempted suicide at some stage in their lives.
Download the 'Locking up or giving up? report (PDF)
Our 2008 report Locking Up Or Giving Up: Is custody for children always the right answer? used government data for England and Wales (1996-2006) to show the changing use of custodial sentences for 10 to 14 year olds. It also drew on Barnardo’s own research interviews with children serving DTOs.
We showed that the use of custody for 12-14 year olds in England and Wales has increased 550% since 1996, and we are increasingly locking young children up for less serious offences – including breach of community orders. We also highlight that custody is expensive and ineffective.
Download the Locking Up or Giving Up? briefing (PDF)
Going forward...
In 2010 we will continue to campaign to reduce the use of custody for 12-14 year olds. We will also highlight some of the issues faced by children who have lived in care and now live in custody.
Resources
View the Locking Up or Giving Up? video:
