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Summary: Report to follow
[20 November 2007] - The UK government has been criticised today over key aspects of children's human rights in a report highlighting how youngsters in custody are being handcuffed or have needed oxygen after being restrained. Analysis by the Children's Rights Alliance for England (CRAE) found that handcuffs were used 44 times on youngsters in custody, and two children had their clothes cut off during a search in prison this year. The UK continues to imprison more children than almost any other European country, with about 3,000 incarcerated at any one time, the study notes. The coalition of more than 380 organisations, which reports annually on the government's progress on implementing children's rights, finds that the degree of protection afforded to children has remained static or is worsening in an array of areas. Out of 78 target areas highlighted in recommendations by the UN five years ago, protection of children has increased in only 10, says the study, which warns the government cannot "pick and choose" which rights to protect. It highlights particular failings in the UK's record on children in custody, noting that in July the government - by then under Gordon Brown's leadership - extended the controversial, and still partially secret, restraint powers for staff in secure training centres (STC). Over 2005-6, oxygen was used five times on youngsters after restraint in one STC, says the report, while handcuffs were used on children 44 times in two STCs in 2006. The majority of child protection allegations within prisons relate to the use of force during strip searching. The report, which comes ahead of a second full UN investigation next year into the UK government's implementation of the UN convention on the rights of the child, identifies a range of other shortcomings in the protection of children's rights. It highlights how, though the UK is the fourth richest country in the world, over a third of children live in poverty - and the inequalities are growing. A child born into the best of circumstances can expect to live 13 years longer than the poorest child, says the study. In London alone, the lives of 41 babies would be saved each year if it were not for socio-economic inequalities. Groups highlighted Some groups of children fare particularly badly, the CRAE analysis finds. Gypsy and Roma children continue to do worst in education, with only 10 per cent achieving five GCSEs at A* to C, compared with the national average of 59 per cent. Children in care also fall way behind their counterparts: only 12 per cent gain the minimum target, and they are over eight times more likely than average to be excluded from school. The report also criticises a new law that makes it a crime for an excluded child to be in a public place during the first five days of their exclusion, including being in a theatre or museum. The study, published on the 18th anniversary of the UN convention on the rights of the child, provides a damning assessment on the Labour government's progress after 10 years in power. The CRAE is measuring progress against recommendations made by the UN in 2002 after a first highly critical report on children's rights in the UK. The CRAE national coordinator, Caroline Willow, said: "This report should the final wake-up call to a government that has so far been in hibernation over most aspects of children's rights. Ministers must take immediate action on the serious breaches before the UK is subject to international scrutiny in 2008." The report also criticises the government for refusing to ban smacking, and condemns the treatment of child asylum seekers, both within families or arriving alone in the UK. Areas of progress welcomed by the CRAE include increased emphasis on consulting children and respecting their views, additional mental health provision for children, action to tackle child sexual exploitation and the new Equality and Human Rights Commission. However, Ms Willow said the government could not "pick and choose" which children to protect and which rights to take action on. The report comes as the government faces criticism today from NSPCC director and chief executive, Dame Mary Marsh, over the lack of counselling and support for abused children. Speaking at the Michael Sieff Foundation conference on child protection, Marsh will argue the "massive gap" in services is contributing to rising youth mental health problems and leaving children struggling to overcome their experiences. Even the most vulnerable youngsters, including those in custody, cannot get help after suffering mental or physical abuse, and are not even routinely assessed to see what help they need, she will say. Further information