Children as young as 15 face being incapacitated with pepper spray after Shabana Mahmood on Thursday authorised its use at young offender institutions [YOIs].
The justice secretary for the first time signed off the use of Pava spray, a synthetic form of pepper spray, for use across three of the five YOIs in England and Wales.
The plan, first reported by the Guardian and announced in parliament, has dismayed prison reformers, who say it will create further divisions between staff and minors in their care. The Howard League for Penal Reform said it might challenge the decision in the courts.
In a written statement, Mahmood told MPs: “I have decided to authorise the issuing of Pava to a specially trained and selected group of staff in the three public sector YOIs (Feltham A, Werrington and Wetherby) for a 12-month period.
“This is not a decision I have taken lightly, but I am clear that this vital measure is needed to urgently prioritise safety.”
Squirted from a canister, Pava spray, or pelargonic acid vanillylamide, causes searing pain and discomfort in the eyes for about 40 minutes and a burning sensation to skin.
In 2018, it was rolled out in men’s prisons in England and Wales. Since then, there have been claims of its disproportionate use against disabled people and those from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Andrea Coomber, the chief executive of the Howard League, said: “This is a direct consequence of a failing system that keeps boys as young as 15 locked in their cells for up to 23 hours a day without meaningful access to education or social interaction.
“It reflects a profound failure on the part of those responsible for children in custody that they would consider introducing weapons in the name of safety.”
Pia Sinha, the chief executive of the Prison Reform Trust, said there was a “real risk” that Pava spray would be used disproportionately against children, and called for independent scrutiny of its use.
“Under the proposed arrangements, the youth custody service will effectively be marking its own homework. The government should commit to undertaking a local authority-led rapid review every time Pava is deployed or used on the children’s estate,” she said.
YOIs hold 300 to 400 children aged between 15 and 18, most of whom have convictions for violence and many of whom have previously been in care.
A report in October by HM chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor found that only one of five of the institutions was deemed to be “safe”.
Inspectors visited the Cookham Wood, Feltham, Werrington, Wetherby and Parc YOIs and found “institutions dominated by violence and disorder and weak education provision at every YOI”, said Taylor, who has previously spoken out against the use of Pava spray in youth justice.
Figures released on Thursday show there were 534 assault incidents from October to December in 2024 across YOIs, secure training centres and schools – rates that are 14 times higher than in the adult estate.
A senior youth custody source said the spray was needed because there had been an escalation in the ferocity of violence used by inmates held in the youth estate, and an influx of gang members ready to make and use weapons.
“We’ve seen a change in the profile of the risk of the young people coming in who have a readiness to turn to weapons as part of violence, a propensity to carry out acts of serious violence against another group,” the source said.
Officials claim Pava will only be deployed in limited circumstance by specially trained officers when there is serious violence or an imminent risk of violence taking place.
Between January and August 2024, almost 800 men in prison had Pava used against them.
Ministry of Justice data shows that in 2022, 34% of those targeted with Pava in men’s prisons were Muslim, despite Muslims only making up 18% of the prison population. In December 2022, black British prisoners made up nearly half – 43% – of all adult inmates who had been targeted with Pava, but only 13% of adult male prisoners.
Mark Fairhurst, the national chair of the Prison Officers’ Association, said the government had recognised the “urgent need” for protective equipment in youth prisons. “Staff should never be expected to tackle violence without adequate protections in place,” he said.
