Children are witnessing extreme violence including stabbings while being unnecessarily held in custody awaiting trial or sentencing, the England and Wales watchdog has found.

Despite professional expectations they would be managed safely in the community, a report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons has concluded that almost 100 children each year are remanded to custody only to be bailed or moved to local authority accommodation less than two weeks later.

One child told inspectors he had watched through his window as another child was stabbed and had “found that scary”. Most were in custody for the first time, few were given clear information about why they were being held, and some said they were confused and frightened.

The findings have been released amid government plans for an overhaul of youth justice, including a 25% cut in the use of custodial remand for children by the end of this parliament.

Launching a white paper last week, the justice secretary, David Lammy, said he planned to “tackle the drivers of offending so fewer young people become trapped in cycles of crime”.

Andrea Coomber, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said the report showed that children were being punished by the mistakes of a prison system that was supposed to help them.

“Prison is a toxic place for children, and spending even a few days in that environment can be terrifying and profoundly damaging. Although remand should always be a last resort, too many children are being sent there by the courts and being punished for the mistakes of services who ought to be helping them.

“The majority of children placed on remand and bailed within seven days or fewer are placed in a young offender institution, where they experience long periods locked behind their doors with very little to do.”

This would never help children to grow and lead productive lives as adults, she said.

Inspectors, led by HM chief inspector of prisons, Charlie Taylor, found that between 1 August 2024 and 31 July 2025, 190 children were remanded to custody before being bailed.

Of these, 91 (48%) involved periods in custody of two weeks or less, and 65 (34%) were for seven days or less, leaving little or no access to education or support.

More than half of those remanded for less than a week were held in young offender institutions, where levels of violence remained higher than in any adult prison, inspectors said.

The report highlights the cases of 25 children, all of whom were taken into custody for seven days or less.

Most were in custody for the first time, few were given clear information about why they were being held. Many were vulnerable and had complex needs, including neurodivergent conditions, previous experience of trauma, and experience of being in local authority care.

One child sent to a young offender institution, told inspectors: “I was scared, there was a lot of shouting and noise, and the next morning there were lots of people [referring to other children] at my door, asking me questions in an intimidating way if you know what I mean.”

There is a presumption of bail as a starting point for children, and remanding them to custody should be a last resort, as set out in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Bail may not be granted to a child it if there are substantial grounds for believing that if released on bail he or she would fail to surrender to custody, commit a further offence, interfere with witnesses or obstruct the course of justice

Youth justice services, which work with children at risk of offending or who have already offended, were frequently not told when a child had been remanded and did not always have time to arrange a suitable bail package, the report found. In some areas, particularly where fewer children were remanded, inspectors said youth justice services lacked the necessary skills and experience to provide credible alternatives to custody.

Taylor said: “While custodial remand is an essential part of any justice system, two out of every five children in custody are now on remand. Well over a half of these children do not go on to receive a custodial sentence.

“We spoke to professionals – in local authorities, custodial institutions and courts – who agreed that short-term remands were often avoidable, and many had ideas about how the current system could be improved.”

A government spokesperson said the Ministry of Justice intended to ensure children awaiting trial or sentencing were not held unless public protection required it, backed by £5m for community alternatives.