Official Statistics

Safety in the Children and Young People Secure Estate: Update to September 2024

Published 30 January 2025

Applies to England and Wales

Main Points

472 assault incidents Jul to Sep 2024, of which 53 were serious

347 different children and young people involved as assailants or fighters
The annualised rate of assault incidents per 100 children and young people per year was 347.1 in the 3 months July to September 2024, a 7% decrease when compared to the same period last year.

The number of unique children and young people involved in incidents as assailants or fighters decreased by 6% in the 3 months July to September 2024 compared to the same period last year, from 368 to 347.
229 assault incidents on staff Jul to Sep 2024, of which 30 were serious The annualised rate of assault incidents on staff per 100 children and young people per year was 168.4 in the 3 months July to September 2024, a decrease of 19% compared to the same period last year.
391 self-harm incidents Jul to Sep 2024


91 different children and young people self-harmed Jul to Sep 2024
The annualised rate of self-harm incidents per 100 children and young people per year was 287.5 in the 3 months July to September 2024, a decrease of 23% compared to the same period last year.

The number of unique children and young people self-harming remained stable in the 3 months July to September 2024 compared to the same period last year.
No deaths reported in the year to Sep 2024 The last death in the Children and Young People Secure Estate was in June 2019.

This Safety in the Children and Young People Secure Estate (CYPSE) Bulletin publishes statistics across all CYPSE sectors for assaults, self-harm, separations and use of force incidents and deaths from April 2014 to September 2024. Oasis Restore Secure School are not included in the accompanying tables nor overarching statistics.

Assaults, self-harm incidents and deaths are refreshed quarterly, with use of force incidents and separations in all sectors being refreshed annually in July.

Where the presented statistics cover the period of the Covid-19 pandemic, it must be considered and accounted for when comparing time periods.

1. Changes in this Publication

Assaults and Self-Harm statistics relating to Rainsbrook STC from April 2020 to July 2021 were missing from the publication issued October 2024. These statistics are now included in accompanying tables 1.2.2 and 2.2.

2. Statistician’s Comment

These statistics present data up until September 2024 across each sector of the CYPSE. Throughout these statistics, the latest reporting quarter is annualised and compared to the same annualised period from the previous year.

The CYPSE is built up of distinct sectors; Young Offender Institutions, a Secure Training Centre, Secure Children’s Homes and a Secure School, which had its first placement in August 2024.

Due to Oasis Restore Secure School accepting its first child or young person part-way through this reporting period and the small number of incidents occurring, it has been excluded from the accompanying tables in this publication and all the quoted statistics in this document unless explicitly stated otherwise. Small numbers are suppressed to prevent disclosure in accordance with data protection principles. See the section on Disclosure in the accompanying guide for more information.

In addition to the statistics in this document Oasis Restore Secure School had an average population of between 1 and 5 children and young people, between 1 and 5 assault incidents and 11 self-harm incidents in the 3 months July to September 2024.

Each sector is operated under different models which are governed by different rules. Caution should be taken when comparing sectors to each other. More information can be found in the accompanying guide to the bulletin. Given the CYPSE’s small population size, individual children and young people (CYP) can significantly impact statistics. This is particularly apparent within Secure Children’s Homes where site populations are the lowest within the CYPSE, however it can also be seen across the larger sites.

Girls can be placed in Secure Children’s Homes and, more recently, at Wetherby YOI since July 2021, Oakhill STC since November 2022 and Oasis Restore Secure School since August 2024. The impact of these placements can often be seen clearly within these statistics.

The average number of girls within the CYPSE was below 10 for the 12 months to September 2024, so no rates have been calculated for girls throughout these statistics and it is not possible to draw comparisons on rates between sexes of children and young people.

It is shown that there has been a decrease in both the volume and the rate of assault incidents and assaults on staff across the CYPSE in the 3 months July to September 2024 when compared to the 3 months July to September 2023, however the volume and rate of serious assault incidents has shown an increase in the same period. The overall decrease in incidents is seen in the Secure Training Centre and Secure Children’s Home sectors, whilst the Young Offender Institution sector saw no change in the volume of assault incidents but a rise in the rate of incidents due to fall in average population of 19% between the 3 months July to September 2023 and the 3 months July to September 2024.

It is also shown that self-harm incidents decreased in all sectors in the 3 months July to September 2024 when compared to the 3 months July to September 2023, particularly in the Secure Training Centre sector where the rate of self-harm incidents decreased by 68%.

3. Assaults: April 2014 to September 2024

Assault incident rate decreased when compared to same period last year

In the 3 months July to September 2024, there were 472 assault incidents in the CYPSE involving 347 different Children and Young People (CYP) as assailants or fighters. The annualised rate of assault incidents was 347.1 per 100 CYP per year, decreasing compared to the same period in 2023 when the rate was 374.5 incidents per 100 CYP per year.

Assault incidents on staff rate decreased compared to same period last year

In the 3 months July to September 2024, there were 229 incidents in the CYPSE where staff were assaulted. The annualised rate of assault incidents on staff was 168.4 per 100 CYP per year, a decrease of 19% compared to the same period in 2023 when the rate was 208.9 incidents per 100 CYP per year.

Figure 1: Rate of assaults and fights by quarter from April 2014 to March 2018 and assault incidents from April 2019 to September 2024

The definition and counting rules of assaults changed from April 2019 (April 2018 for YOIs) and hence no long-term trends are available and there was no estate-wide figure in 2018/19. Figure 1 illustrates the trends before and after the break.

The rate of assault incidents fell substantially at the outset the Covid-19 pandemic. In the last full quarter prior to the pandemic, the 3 months October to December 2019, the assault rate per 100 CYP per year was 466.4.

For the most recent quarter, the 3 months July to September 2024, the rate of assault was 347.1 incidents per 100 CYP per year which decreased in comparison to the same period last year, the 3 months July to September 2023.

In the latest 3 months July to September 2024 there were 229 assault incidents on staff at a rate of 168.4 incidents per 100 CYP per year, a 19% decrease compared to the same 3 months last year where the rate was 208.9 incidents per 100 CYP per year and 323 assault incidents on staff.

The rate of serious assaults in the 3 months to September 2024 was 39.0 incidents per 100 CYP per year, which is an increase of 51% in comparison to the same period last year where the rate was 25.9 incidents per 100 CYP per year.

During the 3 months July to September 2024 there were 347 unique assailants / fighters compared to 368 over the same period in 2023.

During the 3 months July to September 2024 there were 122 unique CYP victims compared to 120 over the same period in 2023.

Figure 2: Rate of assault incidents per 100 CYP per year from July 2023 to September 2023 and from July 2024 to September 2024

The CYPSE-wide rate of assault incidents decreased during the 3 months July to September 2024, increasing in the YOI sector, and decreasing in both the STC and SCH sectors when compared to the same period last year. The lowest assault rates in the 3 months July to September 2024 were recorded in SCHs.

In the 3 months July to September 2024, the comparative rate of assaults across the sectors were 350.0 incidents per 100 CYP per year in YOIs, an increase of 23%; 512.7 incidents per 100 CYP per year in the STC, a decrease of 42%; and 208.4 incidents per 100 CYP per year in SCHs, a decrease of 61% when compared to the same period last year.

The rate of assaults on staff in the 3 months July to September 2024 was highest within the STC at 321.9 incidents per 100 CYP per year, a 37% decrease compared to the same period last year. For SCHs the rate was 72.5 incidents per 100 CYP per year, an 82% decrease compared to the same period last year. In YOIs the rate for the 3 months July to September 2024 was 163.7 incidents per 100 CYP per year, an increase of 17% on the same period last year.

In terms of protected characteristics, the rates of involvement as an assailant or fighter over the 12 months to September 2024 were higher than other groups for CYP aged 16 at 659.6 incidents per 100 CYP, for CYP from a Black background at 761.4 incidents per 100 CYP, and for Muslims at 717.9 incidents per CYP per year (where a religion is known). Due to the low number of girls within the estate over the 12 months to September 2024, it is not possible to draw comparisons on rate between sexes.

The groups with the highest rate of involvement as a victim were CYP aged 10 to 14 years, at 151.8 incidents per 100 CYP per year and for CYP who are non-Christian and non-Muslim at 129.3 incidents per 100 CYP per year. Due to the low number of girls within the estate over the 12 months to September 2024, it is not possible to draw comparisons on rate between sexes.

4. Self-Harm: April 2014 to September 2024

Self-harm incidents decreased compared to same period last year

In the 3 months July to September 2024 there were 391 incidents of self-harm involving 91 different CYP. The annualised rate was 287.5 incidents per 100 CYP per year, a decrease of 23% compared to the same period last year.

Figure 3: Rate of self-harm incidents per 100 CYP per year from April 2014 to September 2024

The self-harm rate for the 3 months July to September 2024 was 287.5 incidents per 100 CYP per year, a decrease of 23% compared to the same period last year.

The number of unique children and young people self-harming in the 3 months July to September 2024 was 91, compared to 92 unique children and young people who self-harmed in the 3 months July to September 2023.

Figure 4: Rate of self-harm incidents per 100 CYP per year from July 2023 to September 2023 and from July 2024 to September 2024

The rate of self-harm incidents during the 3 months July to September 2024 decreased overall, with a decrease in all sectors when compared to the same period last year. The lowest self-harm rates in the 3 months July to September 2024 were recorded in SCHs.

In the 3 months July to September 2024, the comparative rates of self-harm across the sectors were 324.2 incidents per 100 CYP per year in YOIs, a decrease of 5%; 250.4 incidents per 100 CYP per year in the STC, a decrease of 68%; and 154.0 incidents per 100 CYP per year in SCHs, a decrease of 37% when compared to the same period last year.

The rate of self-harm incidents is influenced by small numbers of individuals self-harming multiple times, so it is important to consider the number of different individuals self-harming as well as the overall count of incidents. The highest rate of unique CYP self-harming over the 3 months July to September 2024 was in the SCH sector (18 different self-harmers from an average population of 87.6), followed by the STC (13 different self-harmers from an average population of 66.6) and then the YOI sector (62 different self-harmers from an average population of 385.7).

The number of self-harm incidents that resulted in an injury requiring treatment in the 3 months July to September 2024 was 97, representing 24.8% of self-harm incidents which is a decrease from 25.7% when compared to the same period last year. The number of self-harm incidents that required hospital attendance in the 3 months July to September 2024 is supressed as it was between 1 and 5.

Despite making up around 1.6% of the total average population over the 12 months ending September 2024 (an average of 9.0 girls out of a total average population of 550.0), girls were responsible for 55% of all self-harm incidents (1,194 incidents out of a total 2,176). This should be taken into account when looking across other protected characteristic groupings.

Within protected characteristic groupings, self-harming was most common over the 12 months to September 2024 among 15-year-olds (668.6 incidents per 100 CYP per year) and white CYP (715.2 incidents per 100 CYP per year) in comparison to others in the group. Due to the low number of girls within the estate over the 12 months to September 2024, it is not possible to draw comparisons on rate between sex.

5. Deaths: April 2014 to September 2024

No deaths were reported in the CYPSE in the 12 months ending September 2024

Deaths of children and young people are fortunately rare and there were no deaths in the 12 months ending September 2024. Since April 2014 there have been three deaths of children and young people within the CYPSE.

  • Two at Cookham Wood YOI, in July 2015 and June 2019

  • One at Hillside SCH, in February 2017

  • All deaths were due to natural causes

6. Oasis Restore Secure School: July 2024 to September 2024

Oasis Restore Secure School accepted its first placement in August 2024

Due to Oasis Restore Secure School accepting its first child or young person part-way through this reporting period and the small number of incidents occurring, it has been excluded from the accompanying tables in this publication and all the quoted statistics in this document.

In the 3 months July to September 2024, the average population at Oasis Restore Secure School and number of assault incidents are supressed as they are between 1 and 5.

There were 11 self-harm incidents reported in the 3 months July to September 2024.

Small numbers are suppressed to prevent disclosure in accordance with data protection principles and hence further breakdown of these headline statistics is not possible. See the section on Disclosure in the accompanying guide for more information.

Further Information

Accompanying files

As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release:

  • A guide providing further information on how the data are collected and processed, as well as an assessment of data quality. The revisions policy, other statistical issues and a glossary of terms used are also covered in the guide.

  • A set of summary tables covering both the latest quarter and annual summaries of the data back to 2014/15.

Contact

Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:

Tel: 020 3334 3536

Email: newsdesk@justice.gov.uk

Other enquiries about these statistics should be directed to:

Katherine Tatlock

Youth Custody Service
HM Prison and Probation Service
1 Ruskin Square
Ruskin Road
Croydon
CR0 2WF

Email: YCSInformationAndPerformance@justice.gov.uk

Next update: 24th April 2025 (assaults, self-harm, deaths)

Next update: 31st July 2025 (assaults, self-harm, separations, use of force, deaths)

URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/youth-justice-statistics#youth-secure-estate-statistics-

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Produced by the Ministry of Justice.

Alternative formats are available on request from YCSInformationAndPerformance@justice.gov.uk