Profound Lack Of Trust Between Children and Police: A new report, published by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Children, has found that there is a ‘profound lack of trust’ between children and young people and the Police force. In the Foreward to the report, Baroness Massey of Darwen, the chair of the APPGC, said that a child’s ‘first encounter with police officers can have a lasting effect on how the view the police and engage with them as adults.’

Profound Lack Of Trust Between Children and Police, Finds Report

Whilst Baroness Massey was positive about community projects and organisations such as the Police Cadets, the key findings of the report outlined that overall there is a distinct lack of trust between the police and children and young people – stemming from poor communication and mutual lack of respect.

In addition, the way in which the police treat individual young people who have experienced trafficking, or sexual abuse, was described as a ‘post code lottery’ in the report’s executive summary.

The report also discussed the importance of a first meeting with the police in terms of setting children’s expectations and long-term opinions of the force. For many, their first contact with the police will come as a suspect or as a victim – it is thus considered vital that the police build trust and respect with young people put in these positions from the outset.

In terms of schools, it was found that police initiatives in schools can go some way towards helping to break down barriers – these include Safer School Partnerships and the Voluntary Police Cadets for instance. However, these initiatives are threatened by a reduction in the policing budget, and are not present in all schools and communities at the current time anyway.

Whilst there is a recognition among many young people that police officers are members of the community and are there to help and support it, among others there is a feeling that they are ‘the enemy’ and ‘the people they should avoid talking and meeting with’.

In addition, consultations with adults working with young people found that, among many of them, there was a feeling of fear when police officers approached. One respondent told the Group that they knew of Under-12s who reported their heart rate rising when police approached, as they did not know that the officers were approaching them for.

IMAGE: Ray Forster / Raymondo166, Flickr. Used under Creative Commons License.