Norfolk/Suffolk:140 Children Held Overnight In Cells

21 May 2013, 06:00

Heart can exclusively reveal the number of children held in custody in Norfolk and Suffolk over the last two years.

In Norfolk over the last two years - 59 under 15 year-old's were held overnight in cells.  87 were held for linger than 12 hours and 3 were held for more than a day.

In Suffolk the figures are slightly higher - 81 children under 15 were held overnight, 105 were held for more than 12 hours and 6 were held for longer than a day.

The figures come after a Freedom of Information Request by Heart.

After the request  Chief Inspector Roger Wiltshire spoke to Heart about some of the issues they face when dealing with children who commit crime:

Chief Inspector Roger Wiltshire

The Howard League for Penal Reform Campaign to reduce the number of children who end up in a police cell.  Instead they'd like to see more children dealt with outside of the criminal system where possible.

Andrew Nielson from the charity spoke to Heart Reporter Hannah Griffiths:

Andrew Nielson - Howard League For Penal Reform