The Met's Children Strategy
We have developed a new strategy for children. This strategy informs our policy and practice for officers and staff with regards to children.
Children are all those under 18 years old.
Our ambition
The strategy aims to make a meaningful difference to how we police and safeguard London’s children. It's designed to deliver more trust, less crime, and high standards, as part of our wider New Met for London plan.
Through the strategy we're working to achieve the following:
More Trust
We aim to build strong and trusted relationships with London’s children.
Less Crime
We aim to:
- increase our efforts to prevent and reduce crime committed against children, and do more to identify those who exploit and abuse children and bring them to justice
- ensure children who engage in criminal behaviour have access to appropriate and effective interventions
High Standards
We aim to:
- ensure our officers have the capacity and capability to safeguard all children
- improve our partnership-working, setting out clearly the role of the police in keeping children safe
Child First approach
Through this strategy we will be introducing a child first policy into the Met. This means officers in all their encounters with children, see them as children first. Child First recognises that children are different to adults, they have different need and vulnerabilities, and need to be treated differently.
We have worked closely with safeguarding partners, voluntary sector partners and children themselves to develop this strategy.