The latest nationwide figures reveal a troubling trend – black children are four times more likely to be strip-searched by police officers in England and Wales compared to their white counterparts. Children under 15 make up a significant portion of those subjected to intimate searches, with many conducted without the presence of an appropriate adult. Police searches are predominantly aimed at finding drugs, with over 3,000 intimate procedures performed on children between January 2018 and June 2023.
Despite some progress, issues like racial disparity and failure to comply with safeguarding procedures persist. The infamous case of Child Q, a 15-year-old black girl strip-searched at school for drugs without any evidence, sparked outrage and shed light on the traumatic impact of these searches on children.
Efforts are being made to improve procedures and reduce the number of unnecessary and unsafe strip searches on children. The children’s commissioner calls for urgent procedural changes to safeguard vulnerable children during searches. With ongoing scrutiny and calls for greater accountability, the hope is to create a culture of trust between children and the police, ensuring that these invasive searches are truly necessary and conducted with utmost care.
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