asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department the number of instances where corporal punishment has been inflicted in remand homes and approved schools during the nearest available 12 months; the highest number of strokes administered; for what offences this punishment is given; and the number who have absconded from these institutions and from hostels for youthful offenders.

In 1950, corporal punishment was administered on 673 occasions in remand homes and, apart from cases in which it was given for minor offences in the schoolroom, on 3,973 occasions in approved schools in England and Wales. The highest number of strokes given was six in remand homes and 12, in a few exceptional cases, in approved schools. Corporal punishment is not prescribed for any specific offences. The number of absconders from remand homes was 751, from approved schools 1,407, and from approved probation hostels 174.