England & Wales: Police Four Times More Likely to Strip-Search Black Children

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Facts

  • A new report from England & Wales's Children's Commissioner, Rachel de Souza, has found that, while child strip-searches decreased 42% between 2020-22, one in 20 searches did not comply with regulations, and Black children were four times as likely to be stripped than the overall child population.[1][2]
  • The report comes after an incident in 2020 involving a 15-year-old Black schoolgirl, identified only as 'Child Q,' who was strip searched at her school in Hackney, London after being wrongly accused of possessing cannabis.[3][1]
  • De Souza's new report, published Monday and based on data from 44 police forces, cites 3,368 child strip-searches between Jan. 2018 and June 2023.[4][2]
  • The report showed that in July 2022 to June 2023, despite representing 6% of the child population, Black children accounted for 27% of total searches — a decrease of 11% since the commissioner's 2023 report. 95% of searches in the same period were male, and 72% aged 16-17.[2]
  • De Souza said the disproportionate targeting of Black minors was 'a critical concern,' while also questioning the 'necessity' of the 'intrusive' procedure after half of all strip searches that took place between July 2022-June 2023 resulted in no further action.[5][6]
  • The report has also found that, according to the latest data provided, in 45% of strip searches the attendance of an appropriate adult couldn't be confirmed, while 88% of searches were conducted on suspicion of drugs.[7][8]

Sources: [1]BBC News, [2]assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk, [3]Wales Online, [4]ITV News, [5]Evening Standard, [6]Morningstaronline, [7]Guardian and [8]Daily Mail.

Narratives

  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Runnymedetrust. Invasive strip searches are a highly traumatic and humiliating police procedure. The practice not only violates personal dignity but also inflicts lasting psychological harm, particularly on young people. Addressing societal issues like poverty and inequality would be far more effective in reducing crime than these controversial and racially skewed policing tactics.
  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Polfed. While acknowledging racial disparities in policing outcomes, it's important to recognize that these issues are complex and not necessarily indicative of systemic racism within UK police forces. Top officials are involved in addressing disproportionalities, seeking to refine policies and practices. This reflects a broader societal effort to overcome historical biases.
  • Nerd narrative, as provided by metaculus.com. There is a 50% that the England & Wales prison population rate will be at least 128 per 100K people five years after Labour's 2024 election victory, according to the Metaculus prediction community.