Number of offenders held far from home on the rise

By Neil Puffett Thursday, 26 March 2009

Increasing numbers of young offenders are being held in custody more than 50 miles from their home, new figures have revealed.

Young offenders. Credit: Alex Deverill

Statistics made public by justice minister Jack Straw last week show that the average distance 15- to 17-year-olds were held from home was 52 miles.

A breakdown of the figures shows 46 per cent of 15-year-olds and 41 per cent of 16- and 17-year-olds in custody were locked up more than 50 miles from home.

This represents an increase on the nearest comparable figures in 2005/06, which looked at just male young offenders, when 30 per cent were held more than 50 miles from home.

The Youth Justice Board (YJB) target is for 90 per cent of young offenders to be held within 50 miles of their home.

Andrew Neilson, assistant director at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said locking up children lengthy distances from home can have a negative impact.

"It means it is more difficult for their families to visit them, which is potentially not helpful," he said. "They are also further away from the professionals that will work with them when they are back in the community.

"Prison is not a pleasant place and is made worse if they are many miles away from the place they know."

Neilson added that a key factor in the increases is the drop in the number of local authority secure care homes. These are smaller and more local than young offender institutions, but according to Neilson numbers have fallen in recent years from 31 homes to around 16.

A spokesman for the YJB declined to comment as CYP Now went to press.