PSNI attending children’s homes

Question

In the last 12 months, how many times have the PSNI attended: 

i General children’s homes; (broken down by District where available) 

ii Specialist children’s homes including specialist children’s homes for children with complex needs; 

iii Lakewood Regional Secure Care Centre; 

iv Beechcroft Child and Adolescent Mental Health Unit; 

v The Iveagh centre; 

vi Respite provision for children with complex needs, and

vii Foster placements. 

On how many occasions in the last 12 months when the PSNI attended those facilities listed above was a child: 

i Formally interviewed 

ii Arrested and detained 

Answer

Police Service systems cannot be interrogated easily to provide the information requested, however, the figures below represent the total number of reports to the locations listed, whether or not police physically attended the premises. The figure for Foster placements, in particular, cannot be treated as accurate, as it is dependent on the words ‘foster’ , ‘LAC’ or ‘Kinship’ being used in the report to police. We are unable to provide data in respect of Respite provision. 

These figures include missing reports combined with other calls such as ASB, assaults, criminal damage, etc.

On how many occasions in the last 12 months when the PSNI attended those facilities listed at 1. was a child: 

i. Formally interviewed 

ii. Arrested and detained 

It is not possible to provide accurate information in relation to a child being ‘formally interviewed’ as this would require a manual trawl of approximately 5500 reports. The Niche Records Management System does not record a ‘formal interview’ as a searchable criteria and, often, notebook interviews would be recorded on the Occurrence Enquiry Log for each specific incident. 

A manual process undertaken in respect of the number of arrests at the locations listed indicates that 285 children were arrested at a Children’s home in the last Financial Year. This is subject to the caveat that is an operational figure, dependant on a serial having been closed with an “Arrest” closing code, and, in circumstances where more than one child was arrested will not show the second or subsequent children in the figures.

Les Allamby