Howard League responds to the independent review into the placement and care of girls in youth custody 

The Howard League has today (Tuesday 4 March) welcomed the government’s announcement to end the practice of placing girls in young offender institutions (YOIs).

The decision follows recommendations from Susannah Hancock’s independent review into the placement and care of girls in youth custody – and comes after years of campaigning from the Howard League.

The review, published today, highlights the complex mental and physical health needs girls that often have, with self-harm at a concerning level. Official figures show that girls are involved in more than half the self-harm incidents across the youth estate in England and Wales, despite accounting for less than 2% of the children in custody. 

The review points out that the Howard League, which runs a legal advice line for children and young adults in custody, has been raising concerns for years about the placement of girls in YOIs.

In September 2021, the Howard League raised concerns with the then Secretary of State for Justice about the lawfulness of the decision to place girls in Wetherby prison, a YOI, after Rainsbrook secure training centre was closed. In April 2022, the charity was given assurances by the government that placing girls in Wetherby was a temporary measure for 18 to 24 months, pending a proper plan. Over the next two years, when that plan failed to materialise, the Howard League met five prisons ministers, raising this issue at every meeting. 

The charity stepped up its campaigning last year, when a distressing report from HM Inspectorate of Prisons revealed incidents in which a girl was stripped and restrained by male staff at Wetherby.  

Thousands of people supported the Howard League’s campaign calling on the government to keep girls out of the prison and establish a long-term strategy on the needs of girls in custody. 

Gemma Abbott, Legal Director at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “For too long, girls have been an afterthought in a criminal justice system that has failed routinely to meet their needs. Susannah Hancock’s independent review shines a light on their experiences, telling a shameful story.

“It was never right to place girls in a prison for boys, and we are relieved that the government has announced that it will never happen again. This is an important step in the right direction, and it shows that years of dedicated campaigning, by the Howard League and many others, can deliver real change.

“But there is more to do. The review is right to call for an end to the use of secure training centres for girls by the end of Oakhill’s contract in 2029, and it is vital that we keep working to make sure this becomes a reality.”

Notes to editors 

1. The Howard League for Penal Reform is the oldest penal reform charity in the world. It is a national charity working for less crime, safer communities and fewer people in prison.
2. The independent review of the placement of girls in the children and young people’s secure estate can be found on the Ministry of Justice website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/delivering-the-best-for-girls-in-custody 
3. In March 2024, HM Inspectorate of Prisons published a report on Wetherby, a prison in West Yorkshire holding boys and girls as young as 15. The report found that children had been forcibly stripped and subjected to pain-inducing restraint by prison staff without adequate oversight or accountability. On two occasions, all-male teams of officers forcibly restrained a girl to remove her clothing to prevent her self-harming. You can find more on this report and the Howard League campaign to move girls out of Wetherby on our website: https://howardleague.org/move-girls-out-of-wetherby-prison/
4. Our Howard League blog, For too long, girls have been an afterthought in a failing criminal justice system, provides more information on girls in the criminal justice system and the impact of the Howard League campaign to move girls out of Wetherby: https://howardleague.org/blog/for-too-long-girls-have-been-an-afterthought-in-a-failing-criminal-justice-system/

Contact 

Noor Khan
Press and Public Affairs Officer
Tel: +44 (0)20 7241 7873
Email: [email protected]