The Southeast has a custody rate of only 6.8 per cent, including a relatively high incidence of serious offences such as violence, sexual offences, burglary and racially aggravated offences. Meanwhile, Wales has a custody rate of 11.7 per cent with fewer serious offences. The variation between different youth offending teams is even more striking, ranging from just over a quarter down to nothing.
The number of young people in custody in England and Wales has risen overall by 10 per cent in the first three months of 2004, against an expected rise of half that figure. Rod Morgan, chair of the Youth Justice Board, has criticised the trend towards locking young people up, saying it should only be used as a last resort. He believes closer working between sentencers and the youth justice system could help.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here
