In England, one critical step remains incomplete: the removal of the defence of “reasonable punishment”, a legal loophole that continues to allow physical chastisement of children in the home.
This stands in stark contrast to the legal protections afforded to adults – and to children in Scotland, Wales, and Jersey, where such defences have been abolished.
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) has repeatedly urged the government to explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including the home.
Legal reform would bring England into compliance with Articles 19 and 37 of the UNCRC, which require governments to protect children from all forms of violence, including cruel and degrading punishment. The current legal position undermines these obligations and suggests that physical force against children is, in some cases, justifiable – something we would never accept in the treatment of adults.
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