Crime committed by children under 10 is rising across Nottinghamshire
In the past three years in Notts, 96 crimes have been committed by children under 10-years-old, although we don’t know what type of crimes they are.
Last year alone 33 were reported - an increase from 2016 when only 13 were reported.
Since then the figures have been rising.
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Hide AdIn 2015, 31 crimes were reported which dropped to 13 the next year.
In 2017 the figure again rose to 19 reports.
What happens when a child commits an offence?
Children under 10 cannot be charged with committing a criminal offence.
However, they can be given a local child curfew, or a child safety order.
Children under 10 who break the law regularly can sometimes be taken into care, or their parents could be held responsible.
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Hide AdMansfield accounts for six of the crimes committed in 2018, and Ashfield five.
Local child curfew
The police can ban children from being in a public place between 9pm and 6am, unless accompanied by an adult. This is called a local child curfew and can last for up to 90 days.
If a child breaks their curfew, they can be given a child safety order.
Child safety order
If a child has committed an offence or broken a local child curfew, they can be placed under the supervision of a youth offending team. This is called a child safety order.
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Hide AdThe order normally lasts for up to three months, but in some cases it can last for up to 12 months.
If a child doesn’t stick to the rules of an order, the court can consider if the child should be taken into care.
Nottinghamshire Police have been contacted for comment.