HC Deb 23 February 1965 vol 707 cc67-8W
Mr. Simon Mahon

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many boys of previous good character have been sent to approved schools for truancy and no other cause; and what is his policy on keeping boys in this type of detention.

Miss Bacon

116 boys at present in approved schools were committed for failure to attend school regularly, and 29 of these had not previously been found guilty of any offences. As with boys committed for other reasons, it is for the managers of their schools to decide, in the light of their response to training and their home circumstances, for how long they should be detained, subject to the maximum period prescribed by law.