Young Offenders: Restraint Techniques

(asked on 18th October 2017) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children suffered injuries during the use of restraint in each custodial institution in each of the last five years.


Answered by
 Portrait
Lord Keen of Elie
This question was answered on 1st November 2017

The safety and welfare of young people held in custody is our highest priority. Restraint is only ever used as a last resort, where there is a risk of harm, and no other form of intervention is possible or appropriate. Every incident of restraint is reviewed by the establishment, this includes looking at whether any lessons can be learned for the future.

Minimising and Managing Physical Restraint (MMPR) has been specifically developed for use by staff working with young people in custody. MMPR provides a greater emphasis on managing challenging behaviour without resorting to restraint and also stresses the importance of accurate reporting to enable the ongoing analysis of its effectiveness. It also includes restraint techniques which have, for the first time, been assessed by an independent panel of medical and behaviour management experts, the Restraint Advisory Board.

MMPR has been rolled out in all the Secure Training Centres and under 18 Young Offender Institutions. There are no plans to implement this method of restraint in Secure Children’s Homes who have their own restraint procedures.

We do not collect data on the number of children injured during restraint but data is available on injuries sustained as a result of a Restrictive Physical intervention (RPI), this is provided in the table below for children and young people in Secure Training Centres, Secure Children’s Homes and under 18 Young Offender Institutions in the last five years. RPI is defined as ‘’any occasion when force is used with the intention of overpowering or to overpower a young person’’. Over power is defined as ‘’restricting movement or mobility”.

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

2015/16

Secure Children's Home Total

169

158

156

123

123

Aldine House

1

2

14

3

0

Atkinson Unit*

..

..

..

..

..

Aycliffe

36

51

24

15

14

Barton Moss

0

0

1

3

25

Clayfields

16

11

29

32

16

East Moor (Adel Beck)

15

35

30

27

28

Gladstone Unit*

..

..

..

..

..

Hillside

29

9

12

3

5

Kyloe House*

..

..

..

..

..

Lincolnshire

16

14

6

17

19

Orchard Lodge*

..

..

..

..

..

Redbank*

29

14

12

0

..

Sutton Place*

..

..

..

..

..

Swanwick Lodge

15

11

20

5

6

Vinney Green

12

11

8

18

10

Secure Training Centre Total

336

243

247

136

148

Hassockfield*

140

78

82

28

..

Medway

78

96

54

24

30

Oakhill

31

23

34

34

58

Rainsbrook

87

46

77

50

60

Young Offender Institution Total

685

590

309

170

106

Ashfield*

84

53

1

..

..

Brinsford*

..

..

..

..

..

Castington*

..

..

..

..

..

Castington (Oswald Unit)*

..

..

..

..

..

Cookham Wood

61

28

22

85

26

Downview*

3

6

0

..

..

Eastwood Park*

1

0

0

..

..

Feltham

50

19

9

11

11

Feltham (Heron Unit)*

6

1

0

..

..

Foston Hall*

..

..

..

..

..

Hindley*

164

131

121

24

..

Huntercombe*

..

..

..

..

..

Lancaster Farms*

..

..

..

..

..

New Hall*

0

1

0

..

..

Parc

79

36

24

16

35

Stoke Heath*

0

..

..

..

..

Thorn Cross*

Warren Hill*

52

71

2

..

..

Warren Hill (Carlford Unit)*

1

1

0

..

..

Werrington

85

53

23

10

13

Wetherby - Keppel Unit

17

23

14

2

4

Wetherby

82

167

93

22

17

Please note:

* = The YJB withdrew from this establishment at some point during the time period given.

.. = Not applicable

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