Campaigners are lobbying for an urgent shake-up of the youth secure estate to allow for smaller units that can better deal with the needs of young offenders.
The idea is one of a number of measures put forward in a report by the Standing Committee on Youth Justice on the impact of custody for children and how the situation should be improved.
Sally Ireland, chair of the committee, said it is hoped the document, which is published just weeks before the expected general election on 6 May, will shape the policy of whichever party forms the next government.
The call for smaller units comes on the back of comments by Anne Owers, chief inspector of prisons, last week that such a set-up can have beneficial results.
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