New Clause 2
Education and Inspections Bill
5:45 pm
Annette Brooke (Children & the Family, Cross-Portfolio and Non-Portfolio Responsibilities; Mid Dorset and North Poole, Liberal Democrat)
When we discuss children in custody or asylum seekers’ children in detention centres, we talk much about “Every Child Matters”. I often feel, however, that those two groups are excluded in many ways, so the two new clauses are important in the context of education. There have been had long debates and, indeed, High Court cases about the position of social services as regards children in custody, but education is the topic today.
I turn first to new clause 2. On 31 March 2005, 2,204 15 to 17-year-olds were in prison and 234 12 to 15-year-olds were in privately run secure training centres. As we are all aware, many children in prison have a background of severe social exclusion. Of those of school age in custody, more than a quarter have the literacy and numeracy levels of an average 7-year-old. Sadly, more than half of those under-18-year-olds have a history of care into the bargain. In young offenders institutions, just under a third of the population has basic skills deficits, while the reading ability of 48 per cent. of the overall prison population is at or below level 1, compared with 21 to 23 per cent. in the general population.
Education is important because it gives us the opportunity to put an end to that revolving door syndrome. Otherwise, the problem builds up, with that basic lack of literacy and numeracy still showing itself in the adult population and making some contribution to reoffending.