Hundreds of children are still being subjected to 'intrusive and traumatic' strip searches by police, despite a significant drop in numbers over the past four years, a new report has found.
Decline in Strip Searches
A report by the Children's Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza estimates that 377 strip searches took place in 2024, a 56% decrease from 854 searches in 2020. However, the commissioner has questioned the use of force in some cases and warned that ethnic disparities persist.
The issue gained national prominence following the case of Child Q, a Black teenager who was strip-searched at her school in Hackney, east London, while on her period in December 2020. The 15-year-old was wrongly suspected of carrying cannabis. Last summer, two Metropolitan Police officers were dismissed for gross misconduct over the 'disproportionate' and 'humiliating' incident.
Key Findings
The report, published on Wednesday, found that no searches were recorded at schools between July 2023 and June 2024. However, more than a quarter (26%) of search locations were not recorded. Using data from the first half of 2024, the commissioner's office estimated a total of 377 strip searches for the whole year.
While standard stop and searches can involve removal of coats and jackets, strip searching can involve exposure of intimate body parts and is governed by strict rules. Dame Rachel said that while there have been 'promising signs of progress' in reducing numbers and improving how searches are carried out, 'this progress is masking the fact that too many are still unnecessary, unsafe and underreported'.
She added that 'too many children' are still being 'let down by systemic failures and treated as adults while they are still children'.
Use of Force
The report found that between July 2023 and June 2024, some searches were still being carried out in public view (26) and with no appropriate adult present (22). Three in 10 (30%) strip searches in that period involved children who had already been searched at least once before, which the commissioner warned risked 'significant and repeated damage to their mental wellbeing'.
Force, such as handcuffs, firearms, or Tasers, was used in almost a fifth (17%) of all stop and searches of children between April 2024 and March 2025. However, in 43% of instances where force was used, no further action was taken, calling into 'question the use of necessary and proportionate tests'.
While the vast majority of stop and searches of children in that period were on those aged 11 to 17 (22,437), there were 46 instances of use of force in searches of children aged under 11.
Ethnic Disparities
The commissioner warned of continued ethnic disparities, stating that Black children were almost five times as likely to have force used during a search than white children. In cases where force was used against a white child, officers were more likely to note them as having a mental health need, but for Black children the reason identified was more often their size or build.
Dame Rachel said: 'We cannot accept that Black children are subjected to use of force because of the way they are perceived.' She described strip searching as 'an intrusive and traumatic experience' and said it should 'only ever be used as a last resort when there is an immediate risk of serious harm'.
She added: 'A much higher threshold should be met before a child is subjected to a humiliating and traumatising strip search.'
Police Response
The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) said updates to official guidance on stop and search, which were out for public consultation, would ensure a 'child-centred approach'. Deputy Chief Constable Andy Mariner, NPCC lead for stop and search, said the changed guidance 'strengthens safeguarding requirements, and places greater emphasis on the quality of the encounter – including communication, de-escalation, and dignity'.
He said: 'While there are positive signs in that the number of strip searches has been falling over time, we continue to work with policing partners, stakeholders and academics to understand and address the disproportionate use of stop and search.'
A Home Office spokesperson said: 'We're introducing extensive safeguards for children and young people for strip searching and bringing in reforms to drive up standards in policing, improve vetting and tackle misconduct.'
