HM Prisons is pleased to announce the publication of its latest report, Separation of children in young offender institutions.

The report was launched today (21 January 2020) at an event at One Great George Street, in London SW1, for many professionals and others concerned with the custodial system for children in England and Wales. The report details the findings of our thematic inspection of the treatment and conditions for children separated from their peers in the five young offender institutions (YOIs) in England and Wales.

Peter Clarke (HM Chief Inspector of Prisons) and Angus Mulready-Jones (Children’s Inspection Team Leader) discussed the significant variation in children’s experiences of separation and the extent to which separation regimes amount to the widely accepted definition of solitary confinement. This overview was followed by an opportunity for those present to ask questions of the inspectors who undertook this important work.

The report emphasises the need for urgent and significant reforms in this area. In the words of Mr Clarke: “The weaknesses of current practice and oversight are of such a magnitude that we recommend an entirely new approach, and that current practice be replaced. A new model of separation should be implemented that enables managers to use separation to protect children from harm and prevents separated children being subjected to impoverished regimes.”