The data supports the lived experiences of children in custody: In 2022-23, there were 385 assaults for every 100 children held in youth custody, a rate 14 times higher than in adult prisons in the same period. In the same year, the rate of self-harm for girls in custody was 9,177 incidents per 100 girls.
In most Young Offenders Institutions (YOI), we know that managing disorder often takes precedence over initiatives to support children’s wellbeing and development. As the HMIP report reveals, a common way to manage children who are in conflict with one another is to keep them apart. However, these measures often not only prevent children from accessing education and supportive programmes designed to address offending behaviour, but frequently result in most children spending the majority of every day locked up and alone in their cells.
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