HC Deb 20 January 1993 vol 217 cc316-7W
Mr. Batiste

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has for more secure units for juveniles to be built,(a) in Yorkshire and (b) elsewhere.

Mr. Yeo

It is estimated that an additional 60 to 65 secure places nationally will be required in order to imlement the new juvenile remand provisions in the Criminal Justice Act 1991 by the mid-1990s. It is envisaged that some 10 to 15 of these will be needed within the Yorkshire and Humberside region as a whole.

Mr. Batiste

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many juveniles were placed in secure accommodation in each of the last 10 years;

(2) how many secure places currently exist for (a) male and (b) female juvenile offenders; if she will list the units by county; and how many of the places are unoccupied.

Mr. Yeo

Secure units are available for the placement of any child looked after by a local authority, where the statutory criteria for restriction of liberty are met. This includes juvenile offenders.

Information about the number of secure units in each local authority and the number of places occupied during the year and at 31 March 1991 is published in "Children accommodated in secure units during the year ending 31 March 1991 England". A copy is in the Library.

Information about the number of admissions to secure units in England for the individual years 1984–85 to 1990–91 is also included in the publication. Information was not collected centrally for earlier years.

The latest information about secure places is in the table.

Secure accommodation by region 31 December 1992
Regions and Locations Managing authorities Type Number of places
Northern
New Aycliffe Royston House Durham Observation and Assessment Centre 14 mixed
Aycliffe Community Home Special Unit Durham Community Home (Education) 36 mixed
Netherton Park Elm Secure Unit Northumberland Observation and Assessment Centre 5 mixed
Yorkshire and Humberside
East Moor Community Home Leeds Observation and Assessment Centre 27 boys
Sutton Place Safe Centre Humberside Community Home (Education) 5 mixed
North Western
Redsands Centre Oak House Unit Cheshire Community Home (Education) 6 mixed
Redbank Community Home Vardy House Lancashire Observation and Assessment Centre 6 boys
Redbank Community Home Special Unit Lancashire Community Home (Education) 26 boys
St. Catherine's Community Home Laboure House Nugent Care Society (St. Helens) Community Home (Education) 5 girls
Briars Hey Community Home Orchard House Lancashire Community Home (Education) 8 girls
Dyson Hall Community Home Liverpool Observation and Assessment Centre 8 boys
Park House Barton Moss Secure Unit Salford Observation and Assessment Centre 7 boys
West Midlands
St. John's Safe Centre Birmingham Observation and Assessment Centre 8 mixed
Stoke House Sherbourne Unit Coventry Observation and Assessment Centre 8 mixed
East Midlands
Kesteven House Lincoln Observation and Assessment Centre 4 mixed
Derbyshire Children's Centre Greenacres Secure Unit Derby Observation and Assessment Centre 5 mixed
Amberdale Community Home Nottinghamshire Observation and Assessment Centre 8 mixed
Thames Anglia
Salters Cambridgeshire Observation and Assessment Centre 9 girls
Thornbury House Oxon Observation and Assessment Centre 3 boys
London
Middlesex Lodge Heathlands Unit Hillingdon Observation and Assessment Centre 9 girls
Little Heath Lodge Newham Observation and Assessment Centre 6 boys
Orchard Lodge Southwark Observation and Assessment Centre 8 boys
Frant Court Community Home Greenwich Community Home (Education) 2 girls
Stamford House Hammersmith Observation and Assessment Centre 16 boys
Southern
Lansdowne Children's Centre East Sussex Observation and Assessment Centre 5 mixed
Beechfield West Sussex Observation and Assessment Centre 6 mixed
Fairfield Hampshire Observation and Assessment Centre 3 girls
Glen House Intensive Care Unit Medina Unit Hampshire Observation and Assessment Centre 8 mixed
South Western
Northbrook Community Home Atkinson Unit Devon Observation and Assessment Centre 12 mixed
Kingswood Secure Unit Avon Community Home (Education) 20 boys

Mr. Tipping

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what research she has commissioned to identify the number of secure places needed to be provided by local authorities to ensure that persons aged 15 or 16 years are not remanded to prison; and if she will place copies of the research in the Library;

(2) how many extra secure places need to be provided by local authorities to ensure that persons aged 15 or 16 years are not remanded to prison.

Mr. Yeo

The need for additional secure places has been assessed by a multi agency national steering group. It is determined that some 60 to 65 additional places will be required. The group's assessment was based on information for a NACRO/ACOP survey of juvenile penal remands; information provided by local authorities; and historical information about provision and use of existing secure facilities.

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