Pepper spray to be used against children in jails as CCTV reveals spiralling violence

Pepper spray will be allowed to be used against children as young as 15 in youth offenders’ institutions to curb spiralling violence.

Ministers said they have no choice but to roll out PAVA, a synthetic pepper spray, into the amid fears a young person will soon lose their life to growing violence. But they are set to face a huge backlash from justice and children’s campaigners who have long warned against using such methods against .

PAVA, which temporarily incapacitates its victims, is currently for use in all adult male and by the . Rates of violence in the youth estate are around 14 times higher than in adult jails.

In the last three months of 2024, there were 534 assault incidents in the youth estate, of which 42 were serious. It means the yearly rate of assaults between October and December was 408.5 incidents per 100 children and young people - a 23% increase compared to the same period last year.

Governors have warned of young offenders not only turning on staff but turning on each other, with violence including boys stamping on someone’s head or stabbing them with a weapon. Boys have been known to use cutlery, screws taken out of furniture, or socks with weighted items in them as weapons.

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CCTV footage from YOIs, seen by The , showed one incident where a group of around half a dozen teenage boys turned on another boy, kicking him repeatedly on the ground in a YOI courtyard. An officer tried to throw herself in between the kids after quickly calling for back up, before being pushed out of the circle as the boys continued to kick one of their peers who was trapped in the corner of the courtyard, between a fence and wall.

Another clip showed a fight breaking out in a seating area in the accommodation site of a YOI. As the fight erupted, boys from other areas of the area ran over to get involved in the brawl. The violence quickly escalated and a number of staff ended up injured.

Speaking about violence in YOIs, a senior youth custody source said: “The use of force and restraint within a setting responsible for children and young people has a different policy attached to it There's a higher threshold for intervention and use of it. This is a last resort tactic where the risk to life is such that we need to intervene.”

The source acknowledged concerns from Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons, who has previously warned against “adding something as drastic as PAVA into the mix". He said PAVA use in the youth estate "risks increasing rather than reducing hostility" and would be "a very worrying step in the wrong direction".

The youth justice source said staff were working to improve the system, adding: “That change is underway but it doesn't happen overnight, and overnight we could have that serious incident that manifests in somebody losing their life.

“That's why we have to take this action. So this is not a panacea solution. This is part of us mitigating the risk whilst making effective change to improve the system overall.”

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said PAVA use in YOIs, which hold boys aged 15-18 years old, is expected to be in place by the summer. It will be rolled out across England's three public sector YOIs, Werrington, Wetherby and Feltham, which hold around 300 boys. Over two-thirds of all young people in YOIs are there for violent offences such as murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm.

Officials said PAVA will only be deployed in limited circumstances by specially trained officers where there is serious violence or an imminent risk of it taking place. Its use will be reviewed after a 12-month trial period to address any “disproportionate use”.

The Prison Reform Trust, of which Prisons Minister James Timpson used to be the chairman, has previously warned that PAVA is disproportionately used against Black prisoners in male adult jails.

The Howard League for Penal Reform condemned the MoJ's decision and has threatened taking legal action to challenge the PAVA rollout.

"When PAVA spray was first piloted in adult male prisons, evaluation of the project found that it did not reduce violence overall, and it was recognised – by staff as well as people living in prison – that the spray’s introduction had undermined relationships," the prison reform charity said. "The use of PAVA spray would likely be especially harmful in prisons holding children, where positive relationships are essential to ensure that children are safeguarded and supported."

In a written ministerial statement, Justice Secretary said: "The levels of violence across the Children and Young People’s Secure Estate are unacceptable. On a weekly basis there are assaults involving young people in custody. Serious assaults can see these young people use homemade weapons, including stabbing implements, against each other and our staff. Today, levels of violence are higher than in the adult prison estate."

On the decision to allow the use of PAVA, she added: "This is not a decision I have taken lightly, but I am clear that this vital measure is needed to urgently prioritise safety in these three YOIs at this present time. I believe that failing to act will place young people in custody and staff at risk of serious harm." Ms Mahmood added that the Youth Custody Service has been asked to develop longer term improvement plans for YOIs.

Minister for Youth Justice Sir Nic Dakin said inherited a criminal justice system “in crisis”. “The unacceptable levels of violence faced by our brave frontline officers in young offender institutions is yet another symptom of that,” he said.

“This is not a decision we have made lightly, but our overarching duty is to keep staff and young people in custody safe. This spray is a vital tool to prevent serious violence, helping staff focus on rehabilitation.”

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