While new DPP sentences were abolished in 2012, many older ones remain in force.
The experience leaves a lasting stain on a child's future, even without a custodial sentence.
Disproportionate Impact on Vulnerable Groups
Children with disabilities, those from minority ethnic backgrounds, and those with social-care contact are overrepresented in the legal system.
Many have suffered trauma, including abuse, brain injuries, or bereavement.
Despite the low number of custodial sentences—only 22 out of 1,590 children aged 10-14 found guilty in the year to March 2025 received immediate custody—the process itself is damaging.
Alternatives to the criminal justice system, such as diversionary programs, are effective in reducing future crime and are a better use of public money.
Scientific evidence on adolescent brain development shows that young people are more capable of positive change, yet the law has not kept pace with this knowledge.
Protecting childhood and protecting society are not competing aims.
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As Brimelow states, the measure of a justice system lies not in how early it punishes children but in how wisely it protects their future.
