Children 'left traumatised' by police raids
Neil Puffett
Monday, November 7, 2016
Children who are at home during police raids to arrest a parent or family should get more support to help them deal with the trauma, a charity has said.
The Prison Advice and Care Trust (Pact) said a report into the issue found that an estimated 80,000 children each year experience police home raids when a parent or family member is arrested, but do not receive adequate support afterwards.
Freedom of Information (FOI) requests sent to all 39 English police forces found that only one provided any training that raised awareness of the issues of children being present at arrest.
Forces were also asked to supply details of the risk assessment procedure that is undertaken before a raid on a residential property.
Meanwhile the risk assessment procedures of just two of the 39 forces made any reference to children being in the property, with both of those that did including children in the same category as dogs and animals.
Author of the report, Jo Tilley-Riley, who put it together as part of her fellowship at Clore Social Leadership, a programme for emerging leaders, said: "Each year thousands of children in England experience the trauma of having their home raided and searched, and watching a family member being arrested.
"By ignoring this, we risk casting these children into the strong currents of criminality - making them fear and distrust the police and leaving them scared and angry. But there is a real opportunity for the police to work in partnership to protect these children from unnecessary harm and trauma. And the solutions can be cheap and simple.
"With some basic training and understanding of the issue, the police will not only be able to do their job, but also protect the next generation."
The report recommends that the National Police Chiefs' Council's lead for policing children and young people, Olivia Pinkney, should commission a data project to identify the scale of the problem.
It also calls for the College of Policing to do more to increase police awareness of the traumatic impact on children and the long-term effects that police raids can have on them.
Andy Keen-Downs, chief executive of Pact, said: "As a society, we depend on the courage and professionalism of the police to protect us and uphold the rule of law, and we understand that sometimes this means breaking down doors or entering family homes.
"But what this report confirms for us is that there is an urgent need to recognise the harm that this causes to children who, through no fault of their own, go through the terrifying and traumatising experience of their homes being raided, sometimes in the middle of the night, and of a parent or family member being arrested, handcuffed, and taken away.
"It is quite shocking that there is no automatic follow-up support offered to these children. We therefore need to ensure that we have adequate safeguards in place and we invite police and crime commissioners, police forces, magistrates and others to work with us to find solutions."
