Deprivation of liberty applications rose to record levels in March, figures reveal

The figures have emerged from research into applications made to the Deprivation of Liberty court, which is at the Royal Courts of Justice, to restrict the movements and freedoms of vulnerable children.

The court is being run as part of a 12-month pilot that started in July last year to deal with applications to deprive a child of their liberty.

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Orders can be made to to lock a young person in their room or prevent them from being allowed to use a phone or social media.

On average there are 116 applications a month. While March this year is the highest month so far, the figure dropped to 88 in April.

Between its launch and April this year the court issued a total of 1,139 applications, this includes 76 repeat orders relating to changes in its details.

In total 1,069 children have been subject to the applications, according to the research which has been carried out by the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory.

Applications since July have been made by 151 councils and 21 other applicants, often hospital or mental health trusts to limit children’s liberty in hospital where they are not already in the care of a local authority.

More than a fifth of applications are made by councils in the North West of England and 17.2 per cent from London local authorities. Meanwhile, the fewest are made by councils in the North East. Nuffield says this regional spread has remained constant over the first 10 months of the pilot.

Almost three in five applications are for children aged between 15 to 17. Children aged 15 are the most likely to be subject to orders, accounting for more than a quarter of orders since July.

Nuffield has also found that 1.3 per cent of applications are for children aged 10 or younger.

Marginally more girls are subject to applications than boys.