The Department for Education (DfE) has published a national protocol to reduce the unnecessary criminalisation of looked after children and care leavers in England. Key principles include: a strong corporate parenting ethos recognises the care system is not just about keeping children safe, but also about promoting recovery, resilience and wellbeing; professionals should understand the impact of trauma and abuse on the emotional and behavioural development of children and young people; all local agencies should contribute to the understanding of factors that can increase children and young people’s risk of being criminalised and use this to inform their practice.
Source: DfE Date: 27 November 2018
Further information: The national protocol on reducing unnecessary criminalisation of looked-after children and care leavers (PDF)
Read more on NSPCC Learning: Looked after children
