The Metropolitan Police has announced a “child-first” approach to policing but stressed that it does not mean a “free pass” for criminality by young people.

Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the five-year strategy recognises that the force had sometimes focused “too hard” on criminality and not the “vulnerability that lies behind it”.

All officers will receive new training in childhood vulnerability and adultification bias, which means young people from certain backgrounds are viewed as more grown up.

Scotland Yard also plans to improve relations between officers and children in London, increase the size of child exploitation teams and integrate trained schools officers into neighbourhood ward teams.

A new public protection referrals desk will be established to identify young people who are experiencing domestic abuse.

Sir Mark hailed the “major milestone” in the Met’s aim to keep children in the capital safe, saying the strategy will give officers the support they need to recognise and help vulnerable young people.

He said: “Importantly, the strategy also recognises what the Metropolitan Police has not always got right in the past: that in policing the line between vulnerability and criminality, we may have sometimes focused too hard on the criminality we can see, not the vulnerability that lies behind it.

“This does not mean a free pass for childhood criminality, rather it will ensure we are taking a ‘child-first’ approach to policing which takes into account the unique needs of children impacted by crime and brings to justice those who exploit or abuse them.”

It comes after outrage over the high-profile case of Child Q, a 15-year-old schoolgirl strip searched in 2020 having been wrongly accused of possessing cannabis.

The girl, who is black, was strip searched while on her period with no appropriate adult present at a school in Hackney, east London.

Scotland Yard later apologised and three officers are facing allegations of gross misconduct over the search, with a hearing date yet to be confirmed.

Earlier this month, Pc Connor Jones was proven to have committed gross misconduct after holding a Taser against a 16-year-old black boy’s neck in Greenwich, south-east London, on September 4 2020.

The Met’s new strategy was welcomed by London’s deputy mayor for policing and crime, Sophie Linden, who said “greater emphasis” will be placed on “recognising the vulnerabilities of young people”.

Children’s commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza said: “I have been horrified to see so many of our young people being murdered on the streets in knife crimes like the 15-year-old boy who died in Woolwich earlier this week.

“I welcome this strategy by the Met and look forward to seeing concrete results that show children are safer on our streets and that their trust in the police is rebuilt after widespread failures for example, when it comes to strip searching.”

She added: “It’s clear that more work is required to create a culture across all police forces which focuses on protecting young people and making sure they are treated like children.”

Her predecessor Anne Longfield, of the Centre for Young Lives, said: “Children want to be confident that the Met are there to protect and to serve them.

“Ensuring the Met understands the experience of young people and the challenges they face and interacts with them in a respectful and safe way is a crucial part of building trust.”

Dr Pippa Goodfellow, of The Children’s Society, said the Met’s promises “must lead to real change”, saying too many young people, especially from ethnic minorities, have suffered “heavy-handed policing and distressing use of force”.

She added that trust “won’t be rebuilt with words alone” and called for a “genuine shift in culture and practice”.

Action for Children’s chief executive Paul Carberry said that “too many exploited children are treated as criminals rather than victims”.

He went on: “We urge the Met to roll out this new training as swiftly as possible.”

The Survivors Trust called for the force to directly address child sexual abuse.

A spokesperson added: “While the strategy is a step forward, it will not, by itself, protect children from sexual abuse. 

“This highlights the urgent need for a dedicated child protection authority, as recommended by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.”

UK children’s charity NSPCC said the Met’s new strategy is “much needed” and “must result in a change of culture within the force” to put safeguarding front and centre. 

Barnardo’s chief executive Lynn Perry said: “Far too many young people in the UK are at risk from criminal exploitation, and opportunities are being missed to spot the signs and step in early.

“Too often, children are being seen as offenders – when in fact they are being exploited, and are actually victims in need of support and the chance to turn their lives around.”

In 2023, there were approximately 61,000 child victims of crime in London and 51,000 children who were suspected of committing a crime.