Today, Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke outlined plans for reforming the criminal justice system, aiming to ‘protect the public, punish offenders and provide access to justice’ through a “rehabilitation revolution” targeting the causes of reoffending.

The UK Government has been consistently and severely criticised by international human rights bodies, including the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Council of Europe’s Human Rights Commissioner, for the failure to protect and promote the rights of children and young people in contact with the criminal justice system and in conflict with the law. International concern has focused on the use of custodial sentencing, extremely low ages of criminal responsibility across the UK, the mistreatment of children in custody, inadequate and discriminatory provision of education and health services, and the criminalisation of increasing numbers of children for low-level offences and anti-social behaviour. Over 2,100 children are currently in custody in England and Wales.

Sam Dimmock, CRAE’s head of policy and public affairs said of the announcement:

We welcome the coalition Government’s intention to reform the criminal justice system to ensure a genuine focus on rehabilitation. The failure to date of the UK Government to use custody as a last resort for children and young people is a clear violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Government’s plans must give particular consideration to the situation of children and young people, focusing on support and rehabilitation rather than punishment, and establishing a legal custody threshold rooted in the UK's human rights obligations.

The Justice Secretary’s announcement comes as the Scottish Parliament is voting on the Criminal Justice and Licensing Bill, which includes measures to create a presumption against short sentences, and to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland to 12. At eight, Scotland’s age of criminal responsibility is one of the lowest in the world. If the Bill is approved, England’s age of 10 will become the lowest in the UK. 

Sam Dimmock adds:

Our treatment of some of the most vulnerable children in our society is at times indefensible. Radical reform of the juvenile justice system is required to make sure children and young people get the support and protection they need and are entitled to. We now expect the de-commissioning of child prisons and a new focus on providing the best possible interventions for the very small number of children and young people for whom custody is the genuine last resort.

Read the Justice Secretary's speech (opens in new website).