I SIR, I AM directed to forward to you copy of a Circular which has been issued by the Secretary for Scotland in connection with the Youthful Offenders Act, 1901, and to call your attention specially to the last portion of it referring to Section 13 of the above-mentioned Act, a copy of which is printed below.* My Lords have already in their Circular of 10th October last, No. 327, referred to the assistance that may be obtained by School Boards from Police Authorities in carrying out their duties under the compulsory clauses of the Education Acts. Lord Balfour of Burleigh now desires to call attention to the valuable help which may, on the other hand, be given by School Boards to the police by supplying them with information. My Lords hope that this information will be furnished not only when specially required for the working of Section 13 of the Act in question, but generally for the purpose of controlling and supervising the class of children from whom the greater number of youthful offenders proceed. In regard to the action which should be taken by School Boards on receiving copies of entries in the Register of youthful offenders, as directed in Section 13 (3) of the Act, it is for the Board to consider on each occasion the precise steps that seem to be called for, which will vary according to local conditions and the special circumstances of the case. It may here, however, be pointed out that the matter will be one for the special consideration of the Attendance Committee in connection with the carrying out of the Education (Scotland) Act, 1901. If the offender is one who has been exempted from school attendance the fact should be noted on the register of exempted children which is required to be kept under Section 3 of that Act, and it will be the duty of the Board or Committee to consider, when the matter comes before them, in the first place, whether the exemption granted to the offender in question should be withdrawn; and, secondly, as regards the general rules by which they are guided in granting exemptions, whether the case offers any special features which might modify their practice in future. * Youthful Offenders Act, 1901, Section 13. 66 "(1) In Scotland, in addition to any other register required by law, a (2) This register shall apply to offenders of such age, and shall include "such particulars as may be directed by the Secretary for Scotland." (3) It shall be the duty of the keeper of the register, within three days "after each conviction of an offender under fourteen years of age recorded 5593. U There is, however, a wider aspect of the case which may usefully engage the attention of School Boards and Managers in connection with such returns of offences. Notwithstanding the prominence given in the Code (Article 19. A, 2) to the matter of discipline and the inculcation of habits of self-respect and respect for others, there is too much reason to fear that the school is often looked upon merely as a place for imparting a certain amount of instruction in various subjects, while its importance as a place for the formation of good habits and the instilling of right principles of conduct is only superficially regarded. Of these two ends of school work, in so far as they can be differentiated, the second should rightly be regarded as the more important, and it cannot be too clearly realised that the discipline of the schoolroom has largely failed of its effect if it is not reflected in the bearing and conduct of the pupils outside of the school precincts, while it is not unreasonable to expect that it should have an appreciable influence on them even after they have left school. It is impossible to overlook the fact that the large numbers of convictions of juveniles for police offences, as shown by the statistics of recent years, is a reproach to the school system of the country, and no effort must be spared to reduce the number of these offences as well as to keep in check the disposition to rudeness and lawlessness which stops short of the commission of offences which are taken notice of by the Courts. It may be that in the past the large numbers of children who, through the operation of the existing laws, obtained exemption from school attendance at an early age afford some explanation of this failure of school discipline to affect the conduct of children apparently of school age. But the Education (Scotland) Act of 1901 greatly extends the powers of School Boards in the matter of school attendance and enables them, where they think fit, to require attendance till the age of fourteen. School Boards, in granting exemption before that age, should consider with care the circumstances of each case, and the consequences as to conduct which may follow, and must accept full responsibility for their actions. It is evident, therefore, that the Act of 1901 makes it incumbent upon School Boards to scrutinise most carefully the return of offences under the Youthful Offenders Act, particularly as regards those committed by children under the age of fourteen. The manner of dealing with offenders under fourteen who have been exempted from school attendance has already been referred to; it is no less important that cases of offences committed by children still in attendance at school should be carefully investigated with a view to determining whether they are traceable in any degree to laxity of school discipline, or to too restricted a view of the influence which the tone of a school ought to exert upon the general conduct of its pupils. Especially will this be the case when offences are repeatedly traced to the same school; and it may even be the duty of the Department in extreme cases of this sort, when brought to their knowledge, to reduce or suspend the grant to the school. At the same time my Lords are not forgetful of the fact that schools vary greatly in the circumstances of the children attending them, and that other influences sufficient to counteract and nullify the influence of the school may be the occasioning cause of the abnormal number of offences set against the pupils of a particular school. It will, nevertheless, be the duty of the school authorities in such cases to consider carefully and anxiously how the influence of the school may be strengthened, and, in conjunction with other local authorities, what agencies may be brought to bear to ameliorate the surrounding circumstances. While school authorities have a more direct responsibility for the general conduct of pupils of school age, the statistics of offences committed by juveniles over fourteen years of age should not be overlooked. Due allowance being made for modifying circumstances, these statistics may be regarded in a measure as an index of the permanent effects of school discipline, and a consideration of its details may serve to confirm or modify conclusions otherwise arrived at as to the influence of particular schools. I have, &c., H. CRAIK. (Enclosures to Circular 347.) YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS ACT, 1901. SIR, Scottish Office, Whitehall, S. W., 23rd December, 1901. I am directed by the Secretary for Scotland to forward to you a copy of the Youthful Offenders Act, an important measure which will come into operation on 1st January next, and to ask you to be good enough to bring its provisions under the notice of the The main objects of this statute are (1) To diminish still further the number of sentences of imprisonment on juveniles under 16; (2) To avoid as much as possible the necessity of remanding or committing juveniles to prison before trial; (3) To make parents criminally responsible whose neglect is shown to have conduced to criminal acts by their children; (4) To strengthen the law as to enforcing the duty of parents to contribute to the maintenance of their children in Reformatory and Industrial Schools. The expression "child," as used in the Act, means a person who in the opinion of the Court before whom he or she is brought is under the age of twelve years; young person" means a person who in the opinion of the Court is of the age of twelve years and under the age of 16 years. 66 It may be well to draw attention to some of the principal provisions of the Act. INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. The first section enables a child under 12, who has previously been convicted but sentenced only to be whipped, to be sent to an Industrial School if circumstances afterwards render such a course desirable. By section 15 of the Industrial Schools Act, 1866, a child under 12 may be committed to an Industrial School if charged with an offence and if not previously convicted of theft. Cases have arisen in which the Court has been unable to commit a child to an Industrial School merely because he had previously been birched for another offence. 5593. U 2 NEGLIGENT PARENTS. The second section, which contains important provisions, empowers the Court, after imposing a fine, damages or costs on a child or young person, to order the fine, damages or costs to be paid by the parent or guardían if the Court is satisfied that he has conduced to the commission of the offence by wilful default or by habitually neglecting to exercise due care of the child. The Court may also order the parent or guardian to give security for the good behaviour of the child or young person. The powers conferred by this section cannot be exercised by a court of summary jurisdiction other than a sheriff or stipendiary magistrate; but attention may be directed to the somewhat parallel powers conferred on police magistrates of burghs by section 488 of the Burgh Police Act. REDUCTION OF COSTS. Section 3 directs that where a child or young person is ordered to pay costs in addition to a fine, the costs shall in no case exceed the amount of the fine. It will therefore be necessary in all cases of Youthful Offenders where it is proposed to order the payment of costs in excess of the fine for the Court to satisfy itself that the prisoner is not under 16 years of age. COMMITTAL TO CUSTODY OF "FIT PERSONS." Section 4 enables a Court to place a child or young person on remand or committed for trial in the custody of any "fit person who may be willing to receive him, instead of sending him to prison. This provision is not intended to prohibit or interfere with the release of young persons on bail whenever that course is possible. It is an extension of existing powers, and will, it is hoped prevent many cases being sent to prison on the ground that bail cannot be found. Power is given to make an order on the parent to contribute to the cost of maintenance, and there will be a Government contribution at the rate set out in the Regulations printed as Appendix I to this Circular. It is provided that the parent's payments shall be made to the Inspector of Reformatory and Industrial Schools, or to a person authorized by him to receive the money, because the Inspector is accustomed to collect similar payments and his agents have personal kno vledge of many of the persons who may be expected to be called upon to pay under this section. Payments to persons who have custody of the children will be made directly by the police, who will be repaid by the Inspector. The fitness of a person to have the custody of a child or young person under this section is a matter for the discretion of the Magistrates and will depend largely upon local circumstances. Some Courts, especially those in large towns, may find it practicable to arrange with a local institution, such as an Orphanage or Boys' or Girls' Home, for the reception of cases. Sometimes the most fit person available will be a charitable worker, a Police Sergeant or his wife, or a Prison Officer who resides outside the prison; in other cases some suitable woman in the neighbourhood will be known to the Court. Sometimes the parent, if of good character, will be a fit person, but in this case no payment will be made for maintenance. The Secretary for Scotland could not, however, approve of children being sent under this Section to Reformatory or Industrial Schools, which are not suitable for purposes of merely temporary reception. PARENTAL CONTRIBUTIONS. Section 6 is intended to facilitate the collection of parents' payments in the case of children sent to reformatory or industrial schools. At present the Court proceeds on complaint made by or on behalf of the Inspector, and may, after examining into the parent's ability to pay, make an order against him. In future the Court will also have power to make an order on the parent at the time when the child is committed; and all such orders, whether inade in this manner or, as at present, on complaint, may be enforced as decrees for aliment. The third sub-section will enable the Inspector's agent to prove by certificate payments due from parents. The fourth sub-section is intended to meet the difficulty caused by the frequent changes of residence of parents, who thus constantly evade payment. It is desirable that the parent should be informed of this provision when an order is made against him. DISCHARGE OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS AFTER PROOF WITHOUT CONVICTION. Section 12 extends to Scotland a provision of the English Summary Jurisdiction Act of 1876 which has been very largely used, enabling the Court after a charge for an offence punishable on summary conviction has been proved to dismiss it without proceeding to conviction if it considers the offence to be so trifling as not to call for punishment. REGISTER OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS. Section 13 requires a separate register of convicted youthful offenders to be kept for every summary court, to apply to offenders of such age and to include such particulars as may be directed by the Secretary for Scotland. A copy of the entry relating to any offender under 14 years of age is to be sent to the Clerk of the School Board for the burgh or parish in which the offender re-ides. The Secretary for Scotland has decided that for the present this register shall include all convicted offenders of both sexes under 16 years of age, and the particulars to be entered will be found in Appendix II to this Circular. It is very desirable that particulars such as those specified should be obtained by the police in anticipation of the trial of a youthful offender, in order that the magistrate may be in possession of the material facts before coming to a decision and it may frequently be advisable to communicate with the School Board even in cases where the offence is not proved or the offender is discharged without a conviction being recorded. Lord Balfour of Burleigh believes that on the co-operation of magistrates and School Boards working in association with the various religious bodies and philanthropic institutions throughout the country, may be based the most confident hopes for the gradual disappearance of juvenile crime: and he trusts that the provisions of the Youthful Offenders Act may materially assist towards this end. Addional copies of this Circular will be supplied on receipt of a request to that effect. I am, etc., WM. C. DUNBAR. |