Parents in England and Wales could be fined or jailed for child’s crimes, minister says

Parents whose children commit crimes could lose their benefits, face fines and even be jailed, a minister has said.

Jake Richards said the youth justice system “should hold parents to account in a proportionate way for ensuring that they play their role in keeping communities safe”.

His comments come after the government set out plans to strengthen and expand parenting orders, which can force parents or guardians to address their child’s behaviour by attending counselling sessions, which can even include residential courses, or face a fine of up to £1,000.

Richards, the youth justice minster, said parents would only face jail “in the most extreme cases” and sentences would be up to judges’ discretion. He described the proposed changes in England and Wales as part of a “carrot-and-stick” approach.

“Parenting orders are going to make sure that parents are more involved in the process by which we try to turn around young offenders,” Richards told the Times.

“Yes, that will have some stick. It could be custodial, or docking benefits – ultimately it will be up to a judge. But we want them to be more involved and that comes with responsibilities as well.”

Many experts in the criminal justice system have criticised the proposals and say the orders are not effective and penalise the poor.

In July, Nikki Rutter, an assistant professor in the department of sociology at Durham University, who specialises in child behaviour, told the BBC that “we have a huge amount of evidence that parenting orders aren’t effective. It’s why we’re seeing the decrease in them. The police know these are not effective measures.”

Rutter added that increasing fines would have a detrimental effect on communities. “Poverty is inextricably linked to a lot of criminal activity. The more you’re fining parents, the less money they’ve got. The less money the family have, we’re seeing a further dive into poverty.”

In May, the then justice secretary, David Lammy, said strengthening parenting orders would mean “there are real consequences for parents and carers who wilfully fail to support efforts to address their children’s behaviour”.

He told BBC Breakfast at the time that if a parent was struggling, then the “judge can intervene to make sure that the young person is getting the support that they need and the parent is doing the best that they can”.

He also said he expected the power to jail parents to be used “very, very rarely”.

Courts are required to consider issuing a parenting order where a child under 16 has been convicted of an offence. They can also consider an order for 16- and 17-year-olds if they believe this would help prevent further offences.

The term of the order must not exceed 12 months and breach of a parenting order is a criminal offence with a maximum £1,000 fine, according to the sentencing council.

However, government statistics show the use of parenting orders has declined in recent years, from more than 1,000 orders in 2009/10 to just 33 in 2022/23.

According to a report in the Youth Justice Journal, there is limited research on the impact and effectiveness of parent orders despite the widespread availability of the order since it introduction by New Labour in 1998. The report went on to argue that a parent’s engagement in support should remain voluntary.