Criminalising processes at the intersection of policing and residential care

The role of child protection in the criminalisation of children has not been adequately explored. Interviews with judicial officers, legal practitioners and youth justice workers in England/Wales and New South Wales and Victoria, Australia reveal how child protection systems abrogate parental responsibilities when children in care ‘cross-over’ into the youth justice system. Our findings highlight the tensions and limitations of the ‘best interests’ principle that determines whether children in conflict with the law should be placed in residential care. We conclude by examining the impacts for dual system children when child protection policies and practices directly contributes to their criminalisation.