UK riots cause 8% rise in jailed children | Society | The Guardian

UK riots cause 8% rise in jailed children Society The Guardian

"The influx of child prisoners accused of involvement in last month's looting and rioting has contributed to an 8% increase in the juvenile prison population in England and Wales.

That calculation is based on Youth Justice Board (YJB) figures which show 170 riot offenders aged under 18 are now in custody, adding to the 2,075 child prisoners recorded in June, the latest statistics available. A Ministry of Justice report out on Thursday suggests a lower tally; it says there are 125 juveniles behind bars for riot offences, with 21 sentenced and 104 on remand.

The Guardian has learned that two-fifths of children in custody have had no previous connection with youth offending teams – a marker of criminal behaviour which resulted in a court order.

The YJB, which has responsibility for the administration of youth justice in England and Wales, says that half of under-18s brought in front of the courts on charges of rioting and looting last month were completely unknown to the criminal justice system and only 10-15% of juvenile rioters had any sort of gang affiliation.

The statistics on minors, who comprise 20% of all those convicted of riot offences, undermine claims from justice minister Kenneth Clarke that the riots were caused by a hardcore criminal underclass.

Campaigners have warned the sudden rise in the number of children in jail was a possible breach of the UK's commitment to protect children's rights. Article 37 in the UN convention states that custody should only be used "as a last resort".

Andrew Neilson, assistant director at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: "We were very concerned that there was a rush to custody. Normally young people would be recognised as vulnerable and different and that would be reflected... and that wasn't happening. It's been a one-size-fits-all approach.

"Pushing someone from no contact at all to a youth offending institute, which is the deep end is a very risky thing [and]... this is one of the most disproportionate impacts of the riot sentencing"

"The overuse of remand and some of the sentencing certainly puts in doubt the government's claims that child custody is used as a last resort."

John Drew, the chief executive of the YJB, said there was a crisis in young offenders' institutions (YOIs) because of the sudden spike in the prison population. Offenders, especially in London, have had to share cells or have been moved to prisons hundreds of miles away from home.

He said one of the YJB's biggest concerns was the threat of violence against naive entrants to the prison system. Therefore, all those on riot sentences have been categorised as vulnerable, a measure normally reserved for a small minority."