Initiative launched to support children in custody across the East
'Custody Comfort Boxes' are being rolled out in police stations
Police forces in the East of England are introducing a new scheme to support children involved in drug crime.
A new initiative aiming to help positively engage children who come in to contact with police, especially due to involvement in drug crime, is being trialled across the region.
Forces taking part include Essex, Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire.
Children make up around 25% of those caught up in County Lines and are often those more likely to be at greater risk of exploitation and arrest as orchestrators distance themselves from front line activities.
Their involvement in the ‘running’ of drugs between locations, typically using public transport, means they frequently come into contact with police.
This initiative is focused on positively engaging with those apprehended, with the potential it could lead to contextual safeguarding outcomes and opportunities to pursue those who look to exploit others.
The Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU), together with the National County Lines Coordination Centre and the Youth Justice Board County Lines Pathfinder, have introduced ‘Custody Comfort Boxes’.
These boxes contain supplies for things like art activities, items specifically linked to support children with special education needs and other items aimed at reducing stress levels or that improve mental wellbeing.
The boxes have been distributed to custody suites across Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk, after an initial pilot in London last year.
Holly Finlayson, County Lines Pathfinder Programme Manager, said:
“It is often the case that a child who has been arrested may well go on to become a victim within the same investigation. Unfortunately the experience that they currently have in custody leads to a negative reaction and often an unsupported prosecution against those who have exploited them.
“To stop the cycle of reoffending and to target the people running these organisations, it’s important that we provide support and guidance for those being targeted, and this project is part of a number of initiatives we are running across the region to help with this."
Detective Inspector Kelly Gray, ERSOU’s County Lines Coordinator, said:
“Although it can be easy to criminalise the children involved in county lines, it’s often the case that they themselves are vulnerable and are being exploited, and contact with police presents a unique opportunity to engage with them positively and provide help.
“We often find that detainees don’t want to support prosecution against those exploiting them and many continue to reoffend subsequently. It’s vital we do all that we can to halt this cycle. By treating them as what they are – vulnerable children – we want to build a more positive environment for them and to demonstrate that we are here to help. It may seem like a straightforward idea, but the potential benefits are huge.”
Initial feedback to the scheme has been positive with noticeable differences in cooperation and dialog with some of the most vulnerable detainees, and processes are already being reviewed to utilise the boxes for victims and witnesses who attend the stations.