Commissioner declares state of emergency

Rachel de Souza, England's children's commissioner, says youth services in parts of the country are in a state of emergency. She has visited schools, youth clubs and young offender institutions across the country.

What the commissioner witnessed

De Souza said some of what she heard and seen had utterly disgusted her.In Middlesbrough, a fourteen year old girl told her the crime statistics in her area.

“Children should not have to know those statistics”

The hardest places to grow up

De Souza's analysis of over one hundred sixty measures identified ten areas as the hardest places for children: Middlesbrough, Hounslow, Bradford, Nottingham, Halton, Peterborough, Leicester, Liverpool, Sunderland and Medway.

The easiest places to grow up

By contrast, ten relatively wealthy areas were identified as the least challenging places to be a child: Cheshire East, Merton, Surrey, Richmond upon Thames, Hertfordshire, Cheshire West and Chester, Haringey, Leicestershire, Central Bedfordshire and Wokingham.

A north-south divide emerges

The report, called The Childhood Lottery, says a north-south divide exists.Authorities in the south are more likely to score higher across the metrics, while those in the north score lower, with the Midlands in between.

De Souza's recommendations

De Souza urged the government to draw up minimum standards for education, policing, health and youth services. She recommended every strategic authority have a deputy mayor for children accountable for delivering on a children's test.

Government response

The Department for Education said it was working to improve childcare support and school standards, and giving more power to local leaders to shape the future of education.