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Young Offenders

Volume 184: debated on Friday 25 January 1991

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To ask the Secretary of State for Health for the latest date available how many juveniles are in the care of local authorities in England and Wales following a conviction for a criminal offence; and what were the offences.

At 31 March 1989, 2,100 juveniles were in the care of local authorities in England under section 1(2)f or section 7(7) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1969 following a conviction for a criminal offence. Figures for 1989 are provisional. No information is available centrally about the nature of these offences. The Children Act 1989 will end the power of a court to make a care order as a result of a criminal offence; this power has, in any case, been exercised less and less by courts in recent years.The information for Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many secure units and places therein for juveniles are currently available in England and Wales; and what is the geographical location and the occupancy rate.

On 31 December 1990 there were 34 local authority secure units available in England, providing a total of 288 places. Their geographical location is given in the table.The latest information about occupancy rates is given in the publication "Children Accommodated in Secure Units During the Year Ending 31 March 1989—England", a copy of which is available in the Library.The information relating to Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

England
Local authorityNumber of secure places on 31 December 1990
Avon20
Berkshire4
Birmingham4
Cambridgeshire6
Cheshire6
Coventry8
Derbyshire7
Devon12
Durham50
East Sussex5
Greenwich3
Hammersmith16
Hampshire11
Hertfordshire2
Hillingdon9
Lancashire38
Leeds27
Lincolnshire4
Liverpool17
Newham6
Northumberland5
Oxfordshire3
Rotherham4
Salford7

Local authority

Number of secure places on 31 December 1990

Southwark8
West Sussex6