Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the number of family visits received by children in the secure estate.
Support from their families is central to helping the children in our care to move forward in their lives. We recognise the positive impact it has on safety, resettlement and the prevention of re-offending. The Youth Custody Service recently undertook an internal review to examine how we can improve family contact. The action plan that has been drawn up to implement its recommendations will enable us to continue to drive forward change, and to measure improvement in this area.
Data relating to the number of family visits and video calls received by children in custody is not held centrally, and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.