Submission to the Justice Committee for Evidence Session on Coronavirus: The impact on prison, probation and court systems in the youth justice system (2 June 2020)

“While children in prison have been given additional phone credit, this is typically their only contact with the outside world. The cancellation of all visits means families, social workers, youth offending team workers, lawyers and doctors cannot have face-to-face visits with children. The Inspectorate noted the withdrawal of services, including Barnardo’s and one-to-one programmes previously provided by mental health specialists. The absence of external visitors affects children’s access to services and support and reduces the opportunities for external scrutiny and therefore has worrying implications for safeguarding.”

Read the full submission