Significant drop in number of young people entering justice system in Nottinghamshire

Law reform and human rights charity Justice welcomed the fall, but said more must be done to tackle inequality in the youth justice system, so all children are treated with care and dignity.

Ministry of Justice data shows 257 youngsters aged under 18 handled by Nottinghamshire Police entered the criminal justice system for the first time in the year to September, a 70 per cent decline from 867 a decade prior.

Of the juveniles entering the system last year, 78 were convicted of a crime, 30 per cent, and the rest were cautioned or reprimanded. Where gender was recorded, 200 juveniles were male, 78 per cent, and 38 were female, ​15 per cent.

Across England and Wales, more than 8,300 young people entered the criminal justice system for the first time last year., slightly down from 8,800 the year before and a fall of 74 per cent from 32,000 in 2011-12.

Tyrone Steele, criminal lawyer at Justice, said the declining number of children entering the system is welcome.

However, he said: “This has not benefited all communities equally. Ethnic minority children remain over-represented, still making up more than half of those in the youth custody.”

He said more must be done to tackle racial injustice in the youth criminal justice system.

“This means rolling back on expanded stop-and-search powers and focusing instead on tried and tested diversion programmes, which serve to ensure all children are treated with the care and dignity they deserve, providing vital support rather than damaging criminalisation,” he said.

The figures show 41 children in Nottinghamshire who entered the criminal justice system for the first time were from an ethnic minority background – 16 per cent of juvenile offenders.

Nationally, 20 per cent of juvenile first-time entrants were black, Asian, or Middle Eastern.

A National Police Chiefs’ Council spokesman said forces work hard to avoid unnecessarily criminalising children and young people.

“Our child-centred approach means police will consider a range of options to avoid criminalising young people for their first minor offences,” he said. “Using out-of-court disposals and restorative justice discourages further offending, while ensuring an admission of responsibility is sought and damage caused can be remedied.”