- According to Youth Justice Board (YJB) statistics for the 12 months ending March 2005, just over one in 10 Black young offenders received a custodial sentence. This compared with lower rates for offenders who were of mixed heritage (9.7 per cent), Asian (8.4 per cent) and White (5.9 per cent).
Offenders of mixed heritage (32.6 per cent) were more likely to receive a community sentence than Black offenders (30.3 per cent).
The total number of offences involving young offenders aged 10 to 17 dealt with by youth offending teams totalled 287,013 in 2004-05. This represented an increase of 1.2 per cent compared with the total of 283,639 dealt with in the 12 months to 31 December 2003.
Darren Johnson, lead for the Association of Youth Offending Team Managers on race and diversity, said: "The picture is complex. The sort of offences Black young people are convicted of attract custodial sentences, whereas the offences White young people are convicted of don't."
But he added "disproportionate use" of custodial sentences for Black young offenders could not be explained "by severity of offences".
