FROM CARE TO CUSTODY: ARE WE FAILING OUR MOST VULNERABLE YOUNG PEOPLE?

''A closer look at the care system, youth offending and the criminal justice system in the West Midlands — and why we need to ask what happens to young people long before they enter custody''.

When we talk about young people entering the criminal justice system, we often focus on the offence.

What happened?

What did they do?

What sentence did they receive?

But how often do we stop and ask a different question?

What happened to that young person before they ever entered the criminal justice system?

What was their childhood like?

Did they experience neglect, abuse or instability?

Did they move between different homes?

Did they have somebody consistently encouraging them, listening to them and helping them make sense of the world?

And when they reached adulthood, did they have the support they needed to navigate it?

These questions matter.

Because behind every statistic is a young person with a story that started long before their first encounter with the police. Leaving care shouldn't mean facing adulthood alone Imagine turning 18 and being expected to manage your own accommodation, finances, education, employment, relationships and emotional wellbeing.

Now imagine doing all of that without the security of a family network to fall back on.

For many young people leaving care, the transition into adulthood can involve challenges that other young adults may not experience in quite the same way.

Some have experienced significant trauma, instability or repeated changes in the adults responsible for their care. Others may struggle with confidence, trusting people or knowing where to turn when things go wrong. Of course, many care-experienced young people go on to achieve incredible things. Being care-experienced does not mean someone will offend or end up in prison. But where vulnerabilities exist, the absence of consistent support can make an already difficult transition even harder.

And we need to recognise something important. A young person does not suddenly stop needing guidance because they have become a legal adult. What do the statistics tell us? According to the Youth Justice Board's annual statistics for England and Wales, published in January 2026, approximately 420 children aged 10–17 were held in youth custody at any one time during the year ending March 2025. During that period, approximately 610 custodial sentences were given to children. The proven reoffending rate for children was 31.8% for the year ending March 2024 cohort. These are national youth justice figures, not figures specifically for care-experienced young people. Nevertheless, they raise important questions.

What support did these children receive before entering custody?

Were their difficulties recognised early enough?

Were opportunities missed to intervene?

And what happens when they leave custody and attempt to rebuild their lives?

If almost one in three children in the measured cohort reoffended, we must question whether enough is being done to support meaningful change. Punishment alone cannot address every factor that may contribute to offending. We also need to consider education, housing, relationships, mental health, family circumstances and access to positive opportunities.

The West Midlands: figures we cannot afford to ignore

One of the most concerning findings comes from an initiative developed by West Midlands Police. According to information published by the College of Policing, more than 2,000 care leavers had entered West Midlands Police custody blocks since the beginning of 2024. Of those, approximately 850 requested additional support through a specialist risk assessment process. The initiative focuses on identifying and supporting care leavers aged 16–25 who enter police custody or may be at risk of further involvement in the criminal justice system.

It aims to reconnect young people with appropriate services and improve opportunities for support. It is important to clarify that these are police custody figures, not prison population figures. The published summary does not establish that 2,000 different young people were convicted or imprisoned, or whether repeat custody episodes were included. However, the figures still raise serious questions. Why are so many care-experienced young people coming into contact with police custody services? What circumstances are contributing to this?

Are young people receiving appropriate support before reaching crisis point?

And are services doing enough to help prevent repeated contact with the criminal justice system?

For an area such as the West Midlands, where communities already face significant challenges around poverty, inequality, exploitation and access to opportunities, these are questions we cannot afford to ignore.

How many people in prison have experienced the care system?

Research estimates cited by the Ministry of Justice suggest that approximately 24–31% of the adult prison population have spent time in care during childhood. That is potentially around one in four to almost one in three adults in prison. It is an alarming level of overrepresentation. However, these are national research estimates. They do not tell us exactly how many prisoners aged 16–25 in the West Midlands have experience of the care system. A reliable, publicly available local breakdown for that specific age group has not been identified. And perhaps that raises another important question. If we want to understand why care-experienced young people are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system, are we collecting and sharing enough information to understand their journeys? We need accurate data. We need to understand what happens before, during and after involvement with the justice system. And we need to use that information to improve support, rather than simply recording another statistic.

What happens before a young person enters custody?

Research published by the Children's Commissioner for England highlighted significant educational challenges among children in youth custody.

The findings included:

77% had been persistently or severely absent from school.

54% had been out of education for at least one academic year before entering a secure setting.

Children in custody were approximately five times more likely to have an Education, Health and Care Plan than pupils in state-funded education.

These findings concern children in youth custody, rather than the entire 16–25 age group.

But they tell us something important.

For many young people, the warning signs may have been present long before they entered custody.

Persistent school absence.

Disengagement from education.

Unmet additional needs.

Difficulties with emotional regulation.

Unstable relationships.

A lack of positive opportunities.

These challenges do not automatically lead to offending. But they can indicate that a young person needs additional support. And when several difficulties occur together, the consequences can become increasingly serious. Why are we continually failing our young people? When we look at these statistics, we shouldn't just see numbers. We should see young people. Young people who may have experienced circumstances beyond their control. Young people who have been moved between homes, struggled in education, experienced trauma or grown up without the stability that so many of us take for granted. And we should be asking ourselves a difficult question. Why are we constantly waiting until young people reach crisis point before we intervene? We know that some care-experienced young people face additional barriers. We know that leaving care can mean navigating adulthood without the same family support networks that other young people may rely on. We know that difficulties with housing, employment, mental health and education can overlap. Yet we continue to see young people becoming involved with the criminal justice system.

Here in the West Midlands, the reported number of care leavers entering police custody blocks should make us question whether we are doing enough. Not because being care-experienced makes someone a criminal. It absolutely does not. But because young people who have already experienced instability should not have to reach another crisis before receiving meaningful support. And we need to recognise that the care system itself is not solely responsible. Schools, housing services, healthcare, youth justice, government and community organisations all have a part to play.

We need to stop working in isolation.

We need to stop expecting young people to navigate complicated systems when some are struggling simply to manage everyday life.

And we need to recognise that turning 18 does not automatically mean somebody is emotionally, financially or practically prepared for adulthood.

A young person does not suddenly stop needing guidance because they have become a legal adult.

Are we intervening early enough?

We often talk about supporting young people once something has gone wrong.

Once they've been excluded.

Once they've become involved with the police.

Once they've lost their accommodation.

Once they've left education.

Once they've entered custody.

But what about the years, months and moments leading up to those situations?

What if more young people had access to consistent support before reaching crisis point?

Someone who could help them recognise unhealthy relationships.

Someone who could challenge negative choices without making them feel worthless.

Someone who could support them with money, employment, education and the everyday responsibilities of becoming independent.

Someone who could listen when they felt overwhelmed.

Someone who didn't disappear the moment things became difficult.

Mentoring cannot solve every problem, and it cannot replace specialist services.

But a positive, consistent relationship can be an important part of a wider support network.

The importance of having someone in your corner

Young people need more than somebody telling them what they're doing wrong.

They need opportunities to learn how to do things differently.

They need practical support, encouragement and accountability.

They need to know that mistakes have consequences, but that making a mistake does not mean their life is over.

That is particularly important for young people who have experienced care, custody or significant disruption.

Accountability and opportunity should go hand in hand.

Because if we want young people to make different choices, we also need to help them recognise that different choices are available.

We cannot change somebody's childhood.

But we can help change what happens next.

What needs to change?

We need to think beyond individual services working separately.

Leaving-care teams, youth justice services, education providers, employers, housing services, mental health professionals and community organisations all have important roles to play.

But young people don't experience their lives in separate departments.

Their challenges are often connected.

A young person struggling with accommodation may also be struggling with employment.

Someone struggling with employment may be experiencing financial pressure.

Someone experiencing financial pressure may become more vulnerable to exploitation.

Supporting one area while ignoring the others can leave important needs unmet.

We need joined-up support that recognises the whole person.

We also need to recognise that support should not begin and end with a referral.

Young people need relationships built on trust.

They need consistency.

They need people who take the time to understand their circumstances rather than simply viewing them through a diagnosis, an offence, a placement history or a label.

And they need opportunities to develop the practical skills that will help them become independent.

A final thought: Who was there before they got there?

Perhaps the question shouldn't simply be:

Why are some young people ending up in the criminal justice system?

Perhaps we should also be asking:

What opportunities did we have to support them before they got there?

Who noticed they were struggling?

Who helped them when they stopped attending education?

Who taught them how to budget?

Who encouraged them to apply for work?

Who helped them recognise exploitation?

Who listened when they said they were overwhelmed?

Who remained consistent when their behaviour became challenging?

And if nobody was there, why not?

We cannot prevent every young person from making mistakes.

But we can create more opportunities for young people to receive support before those mistakes have life-changing consequences.

Because young people should not have to enter the criminal justice system before somebody recognises that they need help.

We need to move away from simply reacting to crisis and start asking how we can prevent young people from reaching that point.

We need to recognise the impact of childhood experiences without allowing those experiences to define somebody's future.

We need to listen to care-experienced young people, understand the barriers they face and involve them in decisions about the services designed to support them.

And we need to remember that behind every statistic is a person.

A person who may have experienced rejection, instability, trauma or circumstances they never chose.

A person who still has potential.

A person who deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

A childhood marked by instability should not mean an adulthood defined by struggle.

And a young person's past should never be the only thing we see when we consider their future.

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Sources and further reading

Ministry of Justice / Youth Justice Board — Youth Justice Statistics 2024 to 2025.

College of Policing — Risk assessments for care leavers in custody, covering the West Midlands Police initiative.

UK Parliament / Ministry of Justice — Parliamentary response on care experience and the prison population.

Children's Commissioner for England — Research on children in youth custody and their educational experiences.

Department for Education — Children looked after in England including adoptions, 2025.