Children ‘At Risk’ in Secure Accommodation
Keywords:
children, secure accommodation, significant harmAbstract
In the UK, some children who are deemed to be ‘at risk’ of significant harm in the community are incarcerated in local authority secure accommodation under child welfare legislation, together with young people convicted or accused of serious criminal offences. The deprivation of the liberty and the rights of this group of children is justified on the basis of what is considered to be in their ‘best interests’, and their placement together with young offenders is defended on the hasis that young people who have committed crimes are also vulnerable and could be assessed as ‘children in need’. This article will review the literature and question the legitimacy of secure accommodation as it is currently constituted to provide protective custody for children at risk in the child welfare system.