Arrests of children by Devon and Cornwall Police have been reduced by 77% since the Howard League for Penal Reform began a major campaign to keep minors out of the criminal justice system, new figures have revealed.

For the last decade, the Howard League has been working with police forces across England and Wales to reduce arrests of children. It says that academic research has shown that each contact a child has with the criminal justice system drags them deeper into it, leading to more crime.

The charity’s latest research briefing, Child arrests in England and Wales 2019, published today, shows that every police force in England and Wales has achieved a reduction in arrests between 2010 and 2019, with all but three reducing their arrest rate by more than half.

Devon and Cornwall Police made 960 arrests of children in 2019. This compares to the 4,132 arrests recorded by the force back in 2010, when the Howard League campaign began.

Now the Howard League is encouraging police forces to build on this success and focus on areas where even more could be done to prevent children being arrested unnecessarily – particularly Black children and children from minority ethnic backgrounds, victims of child criminal exploitation, and children living in residential care.

Frances Crook, Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “Every child deserves the chance to grow and fulfil their potential, and we must do all we can to ensure that they are not held back by a criminal record.”

A significant number of forces reported that the rise was believed to be, at least in part, related to operations to tackle county lines. Instead of being treated as victims, some children are being arrested because they are suspected of having committed crimes as a result of their exploitation by others. The Howard League says that “addressing this problem will be a key challenge for forces over the next few years”.

Child arrest figures for Devon and Cornwall Police were as follows: 2010: 4,132; 2016: 994; 2017: 895; 2018: 884; 2019: 960