Submitted by crinadmin on
[1 February 2007] - The Howard League for Penal Reform has written to the Prime Minister and Cabinet members to suggest that when they discuss the break up of the Home Office today (1 February) they consider moving all responsibility for children into the Department for Education. The letter from the director, Frances Crook, says that this is a once in a generation opportunity to create comprehensive government policy machinery for the welfare of the nation’s children. The Howard League for Penal Reform welcomed the creation of the Youth Justice Board a decade ago, but felt that it was erroneously placed within the Home Office and the charity is now urging Ministers to take the opportunity to recognise that children who commit offences are foremost children and that their needs can best be met using a holistic approach. The letter says that local communities would benefit from a more coherent national approach to children at risk of offending as appropriate intervention and support would be more effective at preventing anti-social behaviour than a primarily criminal justice response. Indeed, huge resources have been invested in youth justice for short term measures to respond to children who offend, but once the sentence is completed the children are virtually abandoned and inevitably reoffend. The Howard League for Penal Reform has represented more than a hundred children who have gone through penal custody, which is hugely expensive in financial and human resources, only to be cast adrift by youth offending teams to homelessness on release. Further information