Are young people really so dangerous??

Friday 28 November 08

Public intolerance of young people has reached such levels that more than half of all adults think that British children are beginning to behave like animals, a poll has found.

The poll, commissioned by the children's charity Barnardo's, found that 49 per cent of adults regard children as increasingly dangerous both to each other and to their elders, while 43 per cent feel that "something has to be done" to protect society from children and young people.

Martin Narey, chief executive of Barnardo's and former director-general of the Prison Service, said the attitudes revealed by the study reflected the results of the British Crime Survey, which showed that people blame children for "up to half of all crime" when in fact they are responsible for 12 per cent of criminal activity.

More than half of the survey respondents (53 per cent) said that children were beginning to behave like animals and 45 per cent agreed that people refer to children as feral "because they behave this way".

Mr Narey said it was appalling that words like "animal", "feral" and "vermin" were now used daily in reference to children. He said: "Despite the fact that most children are not troublesome, there is still a perception that today's young people are a more unruly, criminal lot than ever before. The British public overestimates, by a factor of four, the amount of crime committed by young people." In reality, most young people lead trouble-free lives and many contribute positively to society. Half of 16 to 19-year-olds help informally in their communities and a third do formal voluntary work, according to the Barnardo's report. The charity argues that children who become involved in criminal activity come from the most deprived families, have the poorest education and are more likely to suffer from poor health. For more information visit www.barnardos.org.uk.

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