The current picture of the youth justice system presented in the HM Chief Inspector of Prisons annual report 2016/17 is distressing.

The report draws on the findings of recent visits to a number of young offenders’ institutions (YOIs) and secure training centres (STCs). Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons concluded that: ‘There was not a single establishment that we inspected in England and Wales in which it was safe to hold children and young people.’ He warned that the current state of youth custody is so dangerous that tragedy is ‘inevitable’. A setting of this description is no place for any child or young person, let alone for some of our most vulnerable children and young people.