The Children’s Rights Alliance for England has today (18 June) submitted its responses to Government consultations on council visits to children in custody and long-term residential placements. We urge robust rules on the frequency of visits, preferably monthly, and want managers of child detention facilities and residential care to ensure arrangements are in place so that children can freely and easily make contact with their local authority should they require additional visits. Councils must be required by law to respond speedily to children's requests for a visit. Telephone calls and other contact with family members should not be restricted or tied into "reward schemes" particularly in child prisons. We want local authorities to be proactive in ensuring contact takes place around a child's birthday or other special occasions, for example Mother's Day or Father's Day - children have told CRAE that they find it especially painful having no visits during these times.

Carolyne Willow, CRAE's national co-ordinator, says:

These new regulations are a really positive development as too many extremely vulnerable children in institutional settings have little or no contact with their family or council. However, the frequency of visits must be increased to monthly to reflect children's time frames rather that what might work for local authorities. We want much more focus on children's right to maintain contact with their family and support for this to happen. It's unforgivable that so many children in custody go without visits: this can only add to their isolation and low self-esteem.

CRAE's submissions state that visiting staff from local authorities must have adequate safeguarding skills in addition to being able to communicate well with children; ideally, they should be qualified social workers. We reject provisions in the detention regulations which water down the requirement to meet children in private.