Charity calls for child cruelty legal loophole to be closed

The Children’s Society wants MPs to change the law in order to protect all under-18s from neglect or ill-treatment, including child sexual exploitation (CSE), when they debate the Serious Crime Bill next month.

At present, the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 only protects children from child cruelty until their 16th birthday, while all other child protection laws protect all under-18s.

The Children’s Society has warned that the discrepancy in the legislation means that 16- and 17-year-olds at risk of abuse from their parents or carers are failing to receive adequate protection from social services, and claims that the legal loophole left 42,260 young people vulnerable to cruelty in 2013.

In support of its argument, the charity cites the case of a 16-year-old girl who died after overdosing when her family left her without medical help for three days.

Had the girl been 15 years old, the police would have been able to prosecute members of her family for neglect under the Children and Young Persons Act.

However, her age meant they were unable to do that and so attempted to prosecute under the Domestic Violence Crime and Victims Act 2004 instead but were unsuccessful because they needed to prove more than just neglect.

Matthew Reed, chief executive of The Children’s Society, said the government must bring the legislation in line with other child protection laws in order to prevent similar cases from arising.

He said: “It is nonsensical and unacceptable that adults cannot be prosecuted for behaviour against children aged 16 or 17 that would be considered cruelty if the victim was 15.

“If MPs are serious about stopping child cruelty, including CSE, they must act to close this legal loophole when it is debated in parliament in the new year.”