Met says ‘child first’ policing is not ‘free pass’ for crime – The Irish News

The Metropolitan Police has announced a ‘child first’ approach to policing, but stresses this does not mean young people have a free pass to turn to crime.

Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the five-year strategy recognised that police had sometimes focused “too hard” on crime and not on the “vulnerability behind it”.

All officers will receive new training on childhood vulnerability and adultification bias, meaning that young people with a certain background will be seen as more mature.

Scotland Yard also plans to improve the relationship between officers and children in London, increase the size of its child exploitation teams and integrate trained school officers into its neighbourhood teams.

A new Public Protection Referral Office is being established to identify young people experiencing domestic violence.

Sir Mark hailed the “significant milestone” in the Met’s efforts to keep children safe in the capital, saying the strategy will give officers the support they need to identify and help vulnerable young people.

He continued: “It is important that the strategy also recognises what the Metropolitan Police has not always done well in the past: that in policing the boundary between vulnerability and crime, we have sometimes placed too much emphasis on the crime we can see, rather than the vulnerability behind it.

“This does not mean that child crime is a free pass, but it does ensure that we take a ‘child first’ approach to policing, taking into account the unique needs of child victims of crime and bringing those who exploit or abuse them to justice.”

The case follows outrage over the high-profile case of Child Q, a 15-year-old schoolgirl who was strip-searched in 2020 after being wrongly accused of cannabis possession.

The girl, who is black, was stripped naked while on her period without an appropriate adult present at a school in Hackney, east London.

Scotland Yard later apologised and three officers are facing charges of serious misconduct during the search. The date for the hearing has not yet been confirmed.

Earlier this month, it was found that PC Connor Jones had committed serious misconduct after he pointed a taser at the neck of a 16-year-old black boy in Greenwich, south-east London, on September 4, 2020.

The Met’s new strategy was welcomed by Sophie Linden, London’s deputy mayor for policing and crime, who said there would be “greater emphasis” on “recognising the vulnerabilities of young people”.

The Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, said: “I am shocked to see so many of our young people being murdered in the streets by stabbings, such as the 15-year-old boy who died in Woolwich earlier this week.

“I welcome this strategy from the Met and look forward to seeing concrete results that show children are safer on our streets and their trust in the police is restored after widespread failures, such as when it comes to strip searches.”

She added: “It is clear that more work is needed to create a culture across all police forces that focuses on protecting young people and ensuring they are treated as children.”

Her predecessor Anne Longfield, of the Centre for Young Lives, said: “Children want to be able to trust that the Met is there to protect and serve them.

“Ensuring that the Met understands young people’s experiences and the challenges they face, and engages with them in a respectful and safe way, is a critical part of building trust.”

Dr Pippa Goodfellow, from The Children’s Society, said the Met’s commitments “must lead to real change”. She said too many young people, particularly from ethnic minorities, had suffered “heavy-handed policing and appalling violence”.

She added that trust “cannot be restored with words alone” and called for a “real shift in culture and practice”.

Paul Carberry, director of Action for Children, said “too many exploited children are treated as criminals rather than victims”.

He continued: “We urge the Met to roll out this new training as quickly as possible.”

The Survivors Trust called on the police to tackle child sexual abuse head on.

A spokesperson added: “While the strategy is a step forward, it will not on its own protect children from sexual abuse.

“This underscores the urgent need for a dedicated child protection authority, as recommended by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.”

The UK children’s charity NSPCC said the Met’s new strategy was “desperately needed” and “must result in a culture change within the force” to put child protection at its heart.

Lynn Perry, chief executive of Barnardo’s, said: “Far too many young people in the UK are at risk of criminal exploitation and opportunities are being missed to recognise the signs and intervene early.

“Too often, children are seen as perpetrators, when in fact they are being exploited and are actually victims who need support and the chance to get their lives back on track.”

In 2023, there were approximately 61,000 child victims of crime in London and 51,000 children suspected of having committed a crime.