More than 350 applications to deprive children of their liberty made in first three months of new national court

There have been more than 350 applications seeking authorisation to deprive children of their liberty under the inherent jurisdiction in the first three months of the national deprivation of liberty court, it has been revealed.

The Nuffield Family Justice Observatory (NFJO), which is collecting data on the new court, said there were 119 applications in September, 132 in August and 100 in July. The applications were made by 107 different local authorities and seven hospital or mental health trusts.

The data also outlines how the number of applications varied by region. Just under a quarter (23.2%) of applications were made by local authorities in the North West of England, followed by 16.7% of applications from local authorities in London and 11.1% from the South West.

The majority of children (56.0%) involved in applications were aged 15 and above, with a small minority relating to children under the age of 13 (8.5%). The gender of children subject to applications was almost equal (53.6% girls, 46.4% boys), the data reveals.

Alice Roe, researcher at Nuffield FJO, said: “Data from the first three months of the national DoLs court is providing an early indication of the number of children subject to deprivation of liberty applications – children who were previously hidden from view in national statistics.

“As this information has not been published before, it is difficult to know if our findings are representative of an overall increase in applications. As we continue to collect data over the coming months, we will be able to get a better picture of how the number of applications compares to previous records.”

The court was launched in July 2022 by the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane. It is based at the Royal Courts of Justice under the leadership of Mr Justice Moor.

Lottie Winson