Youth justice roundup

Brighton & Hove City Council has cut the number of young people entering the youth justice system in its area over the past year by nearly a third. East Sussex Council said the dramatic fall in local 10- to 17-year-olds entering the youth justice system was down to an increased use by youth offending teams of alternatives to custody for dealing with offending behaviour, with restorative justice replacing reprimands and final warnings.

Children attending nurseries and those looked after by childminders are more likely to develop behavioural problems such as hyperactivity, a study has claimed. the Daily Telegraph reports Oxford University research that found some forms of early education contributed to bad behaviour and could be linked to emotional problems. The study, based on an analysis of almost 1,000 children, found those who spent more time in day care centres were more likely to be hyperactive, and those receiving more care by childminders were more likely to have peer problems.

Campaigners are calling for food colourings linked to hyperactivity to be banned from everyday children's medicines. There are 52 products, including teething gels and painkillers designed for babies, which contain a cocktail of E numbers to give them their bright colours. Action on Additives coordinator Lizzie Vann-Thrasher told the Daily Telegraph: "We are concerned that some of our most trusted children's medicines contain unnecessary colourings that have been linked to hyperactivity and attention deficit disorders.”