What is the campaign?

The Howard League for Penal Reform needs your help. We are a small charity, preparing to take legal action against the government because it has decided to allow PAVA spray to be used against children in prison.

PAVA is a chemical irritant spray that can cause severe pain when sprayed in the eyes. Although it is classified as a prohibited weapon under the Firearms Act 1968, it has been authorised for use in prisons holding men. Now ministers have decided to extend the powers so that prison staff can spray it at children as well.

We have launched a campaign to challenge this decision and protect children from harm.

Why does this matter?

This decision makes children less safe.

We already know that PAVA spray is often used improperly and unsafely in adult prisons. This would be catastrophic in prisons holding children, where children already experience frequent use of force.

When PAVA spray was piloted in prisons holding adults, the government’s own evaluation showed that it did nothing to reduce violence  and it undermined trust between people living and working there. This would be especially harmful in prisons holding children, where positive relationships are essential to ensure that children are safeguarded and supported.

Children in custody are amongst the most vulnerable in our society. What does it say about a system when its leaders feel they need the power to spray chemicals in the eyes of children?

Who does this affect?

The government’s decision authorises the use of PAVA spray in young offender institutions, which hold boys as young as 15. Of these children, about 40% are being held on remand, which means that they are either awaiting trial or sentence. Almost three quarters of children who are remanded to custody do not end up receiving a custodial sentence.

The number of children from racialised minorities in prison is disproportionately high, and there are already concerns about the high levels of force used against them by staff. Introducing PAVA spray will make matters worse; official statistics for prisons holding men indicate that Black men are more likely to be sprayed than their peers.

Children with disabilities are often subjected to the use of force in prison. They too are at risk if the government’s decision is not challenged.

What will we use the money for?

Your contribution will not only help us to proceed with a legal challenge to stop the introduction of PAVA spray in children’s prisons; it will support our work with parliamentarians, the media and other stakeholders to raise the profile of the campaign and push for change.