Figures obtained by the Howard League for Penal Reform show that there were 209,450 arrests of under-18s last year, compared to 315,923 in 2008, a drop of 33.7 per cent.
Despite welcoming the decline, the campaign group said the latest statistics still represent a child being arrested every two and a half minutes.
The charity has also expressed concern that the figure for 2011 includes 2,117 arrests of children aged 10 or 11, meaning that an average of six primary school children were arrested every day.
Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said children who get into trouble are “more often than not just being challenging teenagers”, but the response to their actions can damage the rest of their lives.
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