Recommendations - Children in Custodial Institutions: 2009-2017 investigation report
These recommendations were made in the Children in Custodial Institutions: 2009-2017 investigation report.
Research into child remand population
Recommendation
The Chair and Panel recommend that the Youth Custody Service commissions research into why the child remand population is as high as it is. If the reason is a lack of appropriate community provision (nationally or in certain areas), or otherwise unrelated to a genuine need for those children to be remanded in custody, the Chair and Panel recommend that the Youth Custody Service, with appropriate partner agencies, puts an action plan in place to address this.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice stated that it committed to undertaking further work to consider the use of remand in greater detail.
On 14 May 2021, the Ministry of Justice stated that its report in response to this recommendation will be published shortly. The report highlights areas of best practice and makes proposals for improvement, including actions that can be taken in the youth justice system and key partners to reduce the unnecessary use of custodial remand for children.
On 23 September 2021, the Minister of State (Ministry of Justice) stated that her officials have concluded the engagement and data collection stages of the review of youth custodial remand; its conclusions and next steps will be published in due course.
In addition the Minister stated that the Government is currently taking action to improve the remand framework and process. The proposals in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill will strengthen the tests applied by the courts to ensure children are only remanded to custody as a last resort and will require courts to record their reasons for any custodial remand.
On 5 November 2021, the Ministry of Justice confirmed that it had concluded its research and engagement relating to the remand review. The Ministry of Justice stated that it will publish the report including conclusions and next steps in due course.
On 26 January 2022, the Ministry of Justice published its review of Custodial Remand for Children.
The review highlighted several factors that have impacted the increase in the proportion of children on remand over the past 10 years. It noted the ongoing issue with the number of short remand episodes that do not result in custodial sentences and the “ethnic disproportionality of remand”.
The review reiterated the UK government’s stated commitment to to tighten the legal tests courts must satisfy to impose custodial remand on a child, through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. It also said the Government would strengthen operational delivery and frontline practices, and consider greater use of bail and local authority provision as an alternative to custody. On 28 April 2022, the Bill received Royal Assent and section 157 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 reflects these changes.
Review of placement of children in secure children’s homes
Recommendations
The Chair and Panel recommend that the Department for Education and the Youth Custody Service conduct a full review of the practice of placing children for justice and welfare reasons together in SCHs to establish whether it increases the risk of sexual abuse to children. If so, appropriate action should be taken, including consideration of alternative models. The review should be completed within three months, and an action plan should be published within six months.
Responses
In September 2019, the Department for Education (DfE) commissioned researchers to conduct a review of placement practices in secure children’s homes in response to this recommendation. The report of this review was published on 7 May 2021. The research found no evidence to support concerns that placing children from the justice and welfare systems together in mixed secure children’s homes increases the risk of sexual abuse. The DfE also found no evidence to suggest that justice children pose any greater risk of sexual harm than their welfare peers. The DfE stated that in light of these findings, it does not propose to explore alternative models.
Safeguarding training in secure estates
Recommendation
The Chair and Panel recommend that the Youth Custody Service takes steps to ensure that its training provides staff with an appropriate understanding of safeguarding in the context of the secure estate, and that this is regularly reviewed and updated.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice agreed that training was required. The Youth Custody Service will review the mandatory training for all its frontline staff, including at management level, alongside a review of the content and material where necessary.
In October 2019, the Youth Custody Service (YCS) published its national review of safeguarding.
The review recommended YCS sites develop specific and localised training that meets the emerging needs and threats of the sector. The review recommended appropriate and sufficient training in safeguarding and child protection for staff dealing with Matters of Concerns, and that the policy should be reviewed and widely communicated.
On 4 May 2022, the Ministry of Justice stated that the Youth Custody Service was drafting ‘Keeping Children Safe in Secure Settings’ guidance. This aims to set out requirements for sites that hold children on remand and custodial sentences to: protect children from abuse, respond appropriately to their complaints, and set the same safeguarding expectations as all other agencies providing a service to children. The Ministry of Justice confirmed that the guidance will complement mandatory safeguarding training for all new staff, and will be subject to targeted public consultation. The Ministry of Justice also stated that the Youth Custody Service intends to publish a Safeguarding Strategy that will outline longer term plans for safeguarding training.
Professional registration of staff in YOIs and STCs
Recommendation
As the Inquiry set out in its Interim Report, professional registration of the workforce in settings responsible for the care of vulnerable children complements regulation of institutions by a separate, independent regulator.
The Government has agreed in principle that professional regulation of staff in children’s homes in England could provide an effective additional means of protecting children. It has indicated that it will be conducting an evidence‐gathering exercise to inform further action.
The Chair and Panel now recommend that the Ministry of Justice introduces arrangements for the professional registration of staff in roles responsible for the care of children in YOIs and STCs. The Interim Report recommendation already applies to staff working with children in SCHs.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice stated that it will conduct an evidence gathering exercise involving consultation with the sector and an analysis of successful models in other jurisdictions. It noted that the Ministry of Justice will work closely with the Department for Education to gather this evidence and explore options for establishing a new register.
On 14 May 2021, the Ministry of Justice stated that it has undertaken a targeted consultation with key stakeholders from across youth justice to look at the potential benefits and impacts of professional registration and it is currently in the process of reviewing the evidence. The Ministry of Justice committed to providing the Inquiry with further updates in due course.
On 5 November 2021, the Ministry of Justice stated that it has now concluded its review of the evidence collected through targeted consultation with stakeholders to look at the Inquiry's proposal of professional registration. The Ministry of Justice is considering this issue and will notify the Inquiry of the outcome of this process as soon as possible.
On 4 May 2022, the Ministry of Justice stated that it is considering the review.
Prohibition of pain compliance techniques
Recommendation
The Chair and Panel consider that the use of pain compliance techniques should be seen as a form of child abuse, and that it is likely to contribute to a culture of violence, which may increase the risk of child sexual abuse.
The Chair and Panel recommend that the Ministry of Justice prohibits the use of pain compliance techniques by withdrawing all policy permitting its use, and setting out that this practice is prohibited by way of regulation.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice stated that it had commissioned a review of the use of pain-inducing techniques in Youth Offender Institutions, Secure Training Centres, and during escorts. Following this review, the Ministry of Justice will publish its response to the Inquiry’s recommendation.
On 18 June 2020, the Ministry of Justice published the Charlie Taylor Review of pain-inducing techniques in the youth secure estate. The Review makes 15 recommendations to ensure a safer youth custodial estate, including that the Minimising and Managing Physical Restraint (MMPR) syllabus be amended to remove the use of pain inducing techniques. However the Review notes that “even in the most humane, well-run setting there will be occasions when direct, immediate physical force is required” (p.21) and as a result recommends that staff in Youth Offender Institutions and Secure Training Centres may use pain-inducing techniques to prevent serious physical harm to a child or adult.
Alongside the Taylor Review, the Ministry of Justice published the Government’s response to the Review and its recommendations. In particular, the Ministry of Justice stated that it will revise the approved training modules so that sections on pain-inducing techniques are removed and the MMPR syllabus consists only of behaviour management and restraint techniques.
In April 2021, the Ministry of Justice confirmed that the Youth Custody Service had established the Independent Restraint and Behaviour Panel.
Revision of Prison Service Instruction
Recommendation
The Chair and Panel note that Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 08/2012, which sets out the mandatory actions for YOIs and STCs for ‘maintaining a safe and secure environment’, has expired. The Chair and Panel recommend that the Ministry of Justice revises and publishes this PSI to provide clear guidance on how custodial institutions must respond to allegations of child sexual abuse. This should include a requirement for all allegations to be referred to a child protection professional who is independent of the institution.
The Chair and Panel also recommend that all institutions, including those which are privately run, publish their safeguarding local procedures in full as well as regular reports about their use, to aid scrutiny and increase transparency.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice stated that work to update PSI 08/2012 would commence in 2019. In advance of this, the Youth Custody Service published a policy framework that replaces some aspects of PSI 08/2012 relating to behaviour management of children.
On 4 May 2022, the Ministry of Justice stated that early work had started on producing the Care and Management of Young People framework that will replace PSI 08/2012.
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice also stated that the Youth Custody Service would work with the Department for Education to produce ‘Keeping Children Safe in Custody’, which would thereafter be updated annually. On 4 May 2022, the Ministry of Justice confirmed that the Youth Custody Service was drafting ‘Keeping Children Safe in Secure Settings’ guidance.
Cross-departmental responsibility for safeguarding children in custodial institutions
Recommendation
The Chair and Panel recommend that the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Education share policy responsibility for managing and safeguarding children in custodial institutions. This is to ensure that standards applied in relation to children in custody are jointly focused on discipline and securing child welfare.
Responses
On 23 July 2019, the Ministry of Justice accepted the principle behind this recommendation. It stated its ambition was to replace all Youth Offender Institutions and Secure Training Centres with secure schools and Secure Children’s Homes, which the Department for Education has policy responsibility for. In the interim, work was being conducted to ensure a child-focused ethos.
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Investigation report
Investigation reportView the Children in Custodial Institutions: 2009-2017 investigation report in its entirety.