Britain presses ahead with child prison plan

By Anna Tomforde

LONDON (DPA): The British government is to press ahead with plans to set up special prisons for children aged between 12 and 14 despite strong criticism from social services and child protection groups.

The government has been encouraged by its experiences with the first British "child prison" Medway and believes there is room for four more detention centers to accommodate a total 200 "hardened child criminals".

Medway was established in Kent in 1996 by the then Conservative government after a controversial debate on the value and effectiveness of such prisons.

According to a report published by the prison inspection authorities for the social services this month, Medway is currently in crisis.

Since the opening of the center in April 1998, there have been 150 registered cases of children being pacified with the use of chains. Rioting and outbreaks of rage are part of everyday life at the center, which accommodates 40 children.

More than one third of the center's 100 staff have resigned as a result of violent attacks and a constant stream of verbal abuse. In addition, the Group 4 security firm that runs the prison is accused of using "excessive force".

The report says the original concept behind the prison -- to use social care and training programs to get the children's lives back on the right track -- has simply failed. Use of force and inappropriate measures appears rather to have encouraged the children's criminal tendencies.

Inspection officials report seeing signs of vandalism in the dormitories and recreation rooms. Furniture has been damaged beyond repair and surveillance cameras have been ripped from their supports. They describe conditions within the complex of buildings, which is surrounded by a 5.4 metre high fence, as unacceptable.

Paul Boeteng, the secretary of state at the Home Office, said there were serious shortcomings at Medway that could not be tolerated in the future.

Nevertheless, to get to grips with what he calls the menace of child crime, the government would be sticking to its 120 million pound program to build four more detention centers. A recent study shows that the number of child offenders in Britain has tripled over the last 50 years to nearly 180,000.

But youth protection and prison reform groups say Medway is proof that shutting up young offenders is clearly not the right way to fight crime.

It has become clear that children become more aggressive through such an experience, says Frances Crook of the Howard League for Penal Reform, adding: "Medway is a mistake. The children have been left in the lurch by the public and the tax- payers."

The National Council for the Rehabilitation of Offenders also believes the Medway project has failed. "The idea of shutting children up in mini-prisons was wrong from the start. The government should take the chance to give up this unfortunate experiment," said Nacro Director Rob Allen.