Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to publish data on the strip and intimate search of children by police disaggregated by age, ethnicity and gender.

Strip search and intimate search are two of the most intrusive powers available to the police. There will be times when its use is necessary, to prevent or detect crime or protect the individual or officers. However, it must be used in accordance with the law and with full regard for the welfare and dignity of the individual being searched, particularly if that individual is a child.

For the first time, information on the ethnicity, gender and age of children subjected to strip searches or intimate searches, that have taken place whilst a person is detained in police custody, is being collected by the Home Office.

Data have not been received from all forces, but data that have been collected are scheduled for publication on 17 November 2022 in the ‘Police Powers and Procedures’ statistical publication: Police powers and procedures: Other PACE powers, England and Wales, year ending 31 March 2022 - National statistics announcement - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).