Police protection

Due to the nature of police stations and the lack of adequate professional and physical provisions for accommodating children, the experience of police protection has been identified as a traumatising and inappropriate experience for these children. However, the research base on police protection is very limited. The only dedicated national study, carried out in 2002, found that most cases occurred outside office hours, when social services, courts and specialist child protection teams were unavailable. The majority of cases involved children deemed “at risk”, taken into care due to factors such as parental intoxication, non-accidental injury, suspected abuse or parental mental health issues. A further significant category for which the power was used related to children missing from home or placements. Other cases involved recovering abducted children, removing those left home alone, or managing children who were intoxicated or violent.

The study revealed major variation in how often police protection was used, with a tenfold difference between some forces. Most children were under 15, and three-quarters were initially taken to police stations, despite guidance that this should only happen in exceptional circumstances. As many stations lacked child-appropriate facilities, children were commonly placed in interview rooms, canteens or front offices. Officers often had little training in child protection and relied on “common sense” judgments. Police protection was sometimes used at the request of social services, or as a quicker alternative to Emergency Protection Orders (EPOs), which were viewed as slow and hard to access out of hours.

To gain an understanding of how the power is used currently, the Centre for Justice Innovation has carried out a limited piece of scoping research. This involved sending Freedom of Information requests to police forces and local authorities, as well as having discussions with key stakeholders. It was found that in 2024, 29 of 46 forces reported 8,050 uses of police protection, covering two-thirds of children in England and Wales. If extrapolated, this equates to around 12,000 uses nationally in one year. The rate of use varied sharply between areas, from less than one per 10,000 children to more than 25 per 10,000 children. Data from five forces showed that over half of children held in police stations remained there for more than 12 hours, and two in five for over 24 hours. Some children were taken into police protection repeatedly, with one child held nine times in a single year.

Responses also showed inconsistency in how police implemented the power in practice. The approach to accommodating children differed between forces. A small number of forces stated that police stations should never be used, or only as a last resort and never overnight. Others emphasised that they should only be used in exceptional circumstances. However, five forces made no mention of the “last resort” principle and described routinely taking children to police stations. Some forces reported creating child-friendly rooms or “safe spaces”, while others mentioned the use of hotels, foster placements or relatives. Seven described relying on ad hoc areas such as canteens or witness rooms. Additionally, several forces acknowledged that there were no formal processes for providing food and drink, leaving officers to improvise. A minority highlighted the importance of immediate referral to children’s social care, though this was not consistently reflected in practice.

Taken together, the research shows that police protection remains widely used but inconsistently applied. It is most often deployed out of hours, and too often relies on police stations that are not designed to meet children’s needs. While guidance is clear that police protection should be exceptional and time-limited, in practice, operational pressures, resource constraints and risk aversion mean that children may still spend prolonged periods in unsuitable spaces and, in certain cases, are being repeatedly subject to police protection. Given the wide-ranging scope of these powers, and the frequency with which they are used, it is striking that little is known about them. The data and monitoring of the use of police protection is very limited, the existing evidence base is more than 20 years old, and accountability is therefore absent.

The Centre for Justice Innovation hopes to fill the existing evidence gap by undertaking further research to explore children’s lived experiences of police protection, map the structural factors that precipitate its use, and highlight practice in safeguarding children subject to police protection. We hope that future research will put us in a position to offer practical support to police forces and local authorities seeking to ensure proportionate, appropriate, and safe use of police protection.

College of Policing (2014) Police response to concern for a child - Published by the College of Policing in 2014, this professional guidance outlines how police should respond when there are concerns about a child’s welfare, with a section on police protection. It explains officers’ responsibilities under Section 46 of the Children Act 1989, and based practice protocol in the 2008 Home Office Circular. 

Judith Masson (2002) Police protection: protecting whom - This 2002 academic article by Judith Masson, published in Child and Family Law Quarterly, critically examines the use of police protection powers under the Children Act 1989. The study includes a survey of 16 police forces, and deeper research into eight of these forces around the use of police protection in practice. Her analysis highlights issues of proportionality, accountability, and children’s rights within police-led safeguarding.

UK Public General Acts (1989) Children Act 1989 - The Children Act 1989, passed by the UK Parliament, provides the core legal framework for safeguarding children in England and Wales. Section 46 gives police the power to remove a child to a place of safety for up to 72 hours if they believe the child is at risk of significant harm. This section forms the statutory foundation of police protection practice.