MPs and friends write to minister over ‘brutal handcuffing of weak youngsters’

Better knowledge over the usage of handcuffs and different restraints on younger harmless individuals in care is required to assist deliver an finish to the “brutal handcuffing of vulnerable children”, a cross-party group of MPs and friends has mentioned.

In a letter to youngsters’s minister Claire Coutinho, the signatories mentioned they’re involved at what they name the “worrying prevalence” of weak youngsters being restrained and handcuffed unnecessarily by safe transportation suppliers.

They wrote that there have been cases of “innocent children outside the custodial system” being restrained throughout transport, however organisers from the Hope Instead Of Handcuffs marketing campaign mentioned the precise variety of such cases isn’t identified as a consequence of an absence of knowledge.

The letter’s signatories, which embrace former Labour shadow chancellor John McDonnell, the DUP’s Jim Shannon, and peer and ex-Green occasion chief Baroness Bennett, requested that Ms Coutinho meet with them and members of the marketing campaign group in regards to the subject.

They demanded that the minister “urgently conduct a review of the data gaps in secure transportation, which preclude proper monitoring and scrutiny of providers’ restraint practices”, and mentioned that “accountability and transparency can be increased across the sector”.

The letter added: “Shockingly, many secure transportation providers use restraints such as handcuffs on vulnerable children in care. To be clear, these are innocent children outside the custodial system. Some of these providers even advertise that they use handcuffs on their website.”

They mentioned suppliers “should be required to record and report any instances of restraint to an appropriate body, which would be appointed by the government to monitor and scrutinise this data”, which they mentioned would “bring secure transportation in line with other areas of the care system, improve transparency, and initiate a cultural change within the sector that will reduce, and ultimately end, the brutal handcuffing of vulnerable children”.

Serenity Welfare, a transport supplier, mentioned it doesn’t use handcuffs on youngsters and as a substitute makes use of “non-violent de-escalation and mentoring as part of a humanistic and compassionate provision of care”.

But it additionally mentioned different organisations prepare their workers to make use of restraint methods towards youngsters, together with head management and handcuffing.

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In 2021, in proof to the Human Rights (Joint Committee) inquiry on defending human rights in care settings, Serenity Welfare mentioned: “Many providers of secure transportation services for children in or on the edge of care use handcuffs on innocent children.”

“The practice is unregulated and unmonitored, as there is no obligation on these providers to report any instances of handcuffing to the appropriate authority,” they added.

A spokesperson for the Department for Education mentioned: “The safeguarding and wellbeing of children and young people is of the utmost importance.

“Restraint ought to solely be utilized in distinctive instances the place it’s mandatory and proportionate; for instance, if there was no different solution to stop a toddler from critically harming themselves or others.

“We are continuing our work with the Hope Instead Of Handcuffs campaign to explore what further action is needed.”