Abstract
Use of restraint for children: The Carlile Inquiry: Reflections 10 years on
This report is a follow-up review by The Howard League for Penal Reform of the Carlile Inquiry published in 2006 into the use of restraint, solitary confinement and strip-searching in penal institutions holding children. The 2006 inquiry was undertaken following the deaths of 15-year-old Gareth Myatt, who died whilst being restrained by officers, and 14-year-old Adam Rickwood, who was found hanging in his cell after being restrained by staff. In 2006, the main findings of the inquiry included recommendations that restraint should never be used as a punishment to obtain compliance; that the infliction of pain was unacceptable and may be unlawful; that strip-searching should be risk-led; and that prison segregation units should not be used for children. By not banning the use of restraint, it was deemed the mistakes of the past would be repeated.
Ten years later, this report acknowledges that there has been much progress in youth justice, which includes the reduction of the number of children in custody in England and Wales. Reference is made to nearly 3000 child imprisonments in 2006, and that this number has been reduced by two-thirds. However, it is noted that there remains an over-representation of BME children held on remand. The report identifies that the secure estate has shrunk significantly over the last 10 years, highlighting that of the 11 institutions visited by the inquiry team in 2005, only six remain that hold children. In 2006 it was recommended that ‘split-site’ institutions that contain both adults and children, albeit detained separately, should be reduced. Of the nine split-sites, only two remain, and the privately-run secure training centre, where Adam Rickwood died, has been closed.
While the reduction of the sites is acknowledged, the report refers to children being held further away from home and, because of the need for financial savings, the small local secure units have been closed. There are now only eight secure children’s homes, reduced from 15, and it is highlighted that there are no secure beds in London, the wider south-east and the east of England. Since the publication of the Carlile Inquiry, sadly five more boys have died in prison. A significant point highlighted was that in 2015 privately-run secure training centres were subject to serious allegations of abuse.
Despite the decrease in the number of children in custody, it was found that the rate of restraint has more than doubled in the last five years, with force accounting for over a third of all approved ‘techniques’ that can be used on children. Thus, pain is being used illegally to secure compliance from children, and examples were identified to end restraint quickly. It has resulted in 4350 injuries sustained by children when being restrained during 2011 and 2015. Under the new restraint system, the report highlights that the child should be offered support from an advocate and healthcare. Unfortunately, it was found that this is often not happening.
In 2006 prison segregation was found to consist of ‘small, dank and dark cells’, and it was felt they could increase the risk of suicide. The current report found that conditions in segregation units have not improved. It is now recommended that they should be closed. It was found that there is no central data held on the children placed in segregation units. The report refers to boys being segregated for long periods and, worryingly, one boy spent 89 days in a unit. Overall, evidence suggests that these units have not improved aesthetically and, due to factors such as staff shortages and an increase in violence, restricted regimes have been imposed by the units. This includes children isolating themselves because they are too scared to be on the main prison wings. The review highlights the effects of solitary confinement and how it can exacerbate problems for children.
In relation to strip-search, routine strip-searching ended following the Carlile Inquiry and was replaced by a risk-led approach. In 2015, 367 strip-searches of boys were carried out. Concerns are raised that boys are being strip-searched while under restraint rather than less intrusive methods being explored first.
In conclusion, the comparative report by the Howard League identifies that children continue to be harmed in prisons 10 years after the Carlile Inquiry. The report stresses that steps should be taken immediately to ensure the children’s safety. It goes on to say that prisons and privately-run secure training centres should be closed down without delay. Small local units are deemed to be safer and providers of the best care and rehabilitation. It further concludes that reform focuses on reducing the number of children in custody to an absolute minimum. Hopefully, the recommendations noted in this report will be seriously addressed.
The Carlile Inquiry 10 Years On: The Use of Restraint, Solitary Confinement and Strip-Searching on Children, published by the Howard League (2016), is available for free at: http://howardleague.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Carlile-Inquiry-10-years-on.pdf