Youth arrests in West Midlands nearly double since 2021, FOI figures show
Police data reveals rise in under-16 arrests, with almost 3,000 children arrested last year
Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster says more needs to be done to prevent young people entering the criminal justice system, as new figures show a sharp rise in youth arrests across the West Midlands.
He said: “We don’t want to unnecessarily overly criminalise young people. So it is about making sure that we’re investing in prevention, early intervention, diversion and addressing the underlying causes of crime and whenever and wherever possible we want to keep young people out of the criminal justice system.”
Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show the number of arrests of children aged 10 to 15 nearly doubled between 2021 and 2025.
West Midlands Police data shows there were 1,779 arrests in 2021, rising to 2,153 in 2022, 2,889 in 2023, 2,966 in 2024 and 2,919 in 2025.
The figures show most arrests involve older children, particularly those aged 14 and 15. In 2025, there were 761 arrests of 15-year-olds and 562 of 14-year-olds, compared with 325 aged 13, 127 aged 12, 48 aged 11 and nine aged 10.
The FOI response also details outcomes following arrest, including charges, cautions and community resolutions, alongside cases recorded as evidential difficulties or where no further action was taken.
In 2025, 83 cases resulted in charge or summons, 129 in youth cautions and 219 in community resolutions. The data also shows 678 cases where evidential difficulties meant no suspect was identified and 553 where a suspect was identified but evidential issues prevented further action.
The figures cover the period from January 2021 to December 2025.