Youth justice roundup

Around 40 children a week are being arrested by police patrolling Britain’s railways, it has emerged. Figures obtained by the Howard League for Penal Reform show that British Transport Police (BTP) made 2,090 arrests of boys and girls aged 17 and younger during 2011 – a 12 per cent fall from 2009, when 2,374 arrests were recorded. The Howard League has been campaigning for BTP to take a different approach to children that involves educating them about the dangers of playing on or near railways rather than punishing behaviour.

Youth projects in South Lanarkshire, Scotland have received almost £30,000 in funding from money recovered from criminals. The East Kilbride News reports that the Scottish Government’s Cashback scheme reinvests the money in community activities designed to prevent young people taking part in antisocial behaviour. More than £7m has been reinvested in almost 1,400 projects across Scotland over the past five years.

A study by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) says living standards in some of the UK’s best-known coastal towns have “declined beyond recognition”. Researchers found that some councils in high-cost areas take advantage of cheap accommodation in seaside towns and use them to place vulnerable people, such as children in care. “This has caused some areas to become dumping grounds for people with complex needs and intensifies pressure on schools, social workers and other services,” CSJ policy director Alex Burghart, who edited the report, said.