Children’s Commissioner
Printable version

Press Notice: Deep distrust of the police and lack of opportunity as drivers in children’s motivation to take part in last summer’s riots

Unique research by the Children’s Commissioner’s Office found that young people who took part in last summer’s riots were not primarily driven by social media misinformation or racism but by curiosity of the events, deep distrust of the police or the lack of opportunities in their community.

  • Hundreds of children, some as young as 11, were caught up in riots last summer sparked by tragic murders of three girls in Southport.
  • At least 147 children arrested, 84 charged, 73 with finalised outcomes by October 31st.
  • Children’s Commissioner uses unique statutory powers to speak to around 20% of the children including some in Young Offenders Institutions charged in connection with last summer’s riots.
  • In interviews, many spoke strongly about their distrust of the police, describing previous bad experiences and community mistrust.
  • Postcode lottery with the youth justice system as outcomes depended on where they lived.

Dame Rachel de Souza used her statutory powers to speak to about 20 per cent of the children who were charged in the aftermath of the summer riots that broke out after the tragic murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar in Southport on 29 July 2024.

Hundreds of children – some as young as 11 – were caught up in the unrest in 26 areas across England following the lead of thousands of adults whose involvement was deemed to be racially motivated targeting locations known to house asylum seekers.

The findings of today’s report focus on children’s motivation for taking part, challenging the prevailing narrative that young people’s involvement was orchestrated by deliberate misinformation spread through social media linked to racist and right-wing influencers.

While these factors played a potential role, they did not appear to drive children’s actions.

Instead, many children’s involvement in the riots was spontaneous, not thought out and opportunistic. The report found that they were not primarily driven by far-right, anti-immigration or racist views. Children spoke about their curiosity of these events and their animosity towards the police.

Click here for the full press release

 

Channel website: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/

Original article link: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/news/press-notice-deep-distrust-of-the-police-and-lack-of-opportunity-as-drivers-in-childrens-motivation-to-take-part-in-last-summers-riots/

Share this article

Latest News from
Children’s Commissioner

Breaking Down the Procurement Act 2023 Guide