PAVA spray used disproportionately against Black boys in prison, figures show

Black children and young people have been disproportionately subjected to PAVA spray in England’s prisons holding children, according to new figures obtained by the Howard League for Penal Reform.

The data, obtained through a Freedom of Information request, covers the first few months after the Ministry of Justice authorised the use of PAVA spray at three prisons holding boys aged 15 and over: Feltham A, Werrington and Wetherby.

The then Secretary of State for Justice, Shabana Mahmood, approved the rollout in April 2025, with deployment beginning at Werrington and Wetherby in August and Feltham A in September.

By the end of March 2026, PAVA spray had been drawn and used against 33 children and young people in total – 19 at Feltham A and 14 at Werrington. At Wetherby, the spray had been drawn on at least one occasion but had not been used.

Of the 33 children and young people against whom PAVA spray was used, 18 were Black and six were white. The Howard League said Black children and young people accounted for about 55% of those subjected to the spray, despite making up around 30% of the population across Feltham A and Werrington.

The figures come after ministers had previously been warned that PAVA was likely to be used disproportionately against Black children. The warning emerged during a High Court challenge brought by the Howard League in December 2025 against the government’s decision to authorise the spray.

During the two-day hearing, the court heard that the then Secretary of State had been provided with an Equality Impact Assessment and a Child Rights Impact Assessment indicating that Black children, Muslim children and children with disabilities were likely to be particularly adversely affected.

The Secretary of State was recorded as having raised concerns about the disproportionate use of PAVA against Black children, describing this as “this is her red line and she would not defend disproportionality in use”.

However, the decision to authorise its use went ahead. Mr Justice Calver was told that the decision had been “finely balanced” because of the risks and controversial nature of using PAVA spray against children.

The court also heard that the Ministry of Justice did not expect the introduction of PAVA to reduce overall levels of violence and harm in children’s prisons. The judge acknowledged that officials considered it could potentially result in a “long-term escalation and rising tenor of violent behaviour”, while believing it could prevent immediate and serious harm or violence.

Although the Howard League’s legal challenge was dismissed, the charity has continued to monitor the use and governance of PAVA spray.

It said last month that the Ministry of Justice had authorised its use at the three prisons for a further 12 months and established a monitoring and oversight board in response to “ongoing concern” about disproportionality. This includes particular concerns about the impact on Black children and children who are neurodiverse.

The Howard League said it was also urgently seeking further clarity about the impact of PAVA use on children with disabilities.

Gemma Abbott, Legal Director at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “PAVA is a chemical irritant spray that can cause severe pain, and it is classified as a prohibited weapon under the Firearms Act 1968. It is shameful that prison staff have been given the power to use it against children.

“Before ministers made this decision, they were told that it would affect Black children disproportionately. The then Secretary of State said that this would be her ‘red line’ but went ahead anyway – and the figures we share today indicate that line is being crossed again and again. Instead of setting up yet another means of monitoring the harm being done to children, ministers should urgently withdraw PAVA from children’s prisons and stop the harm happening in the first place.”

Abbott also questioned the effectiveness of safeguards surrounding the use of PAVA, pointing to concerns about other techniques used with children in custody.

“The Ministry of Justice promised that safeguards would be in place, but we continue to have serious reservations as to how effective any safeguards can ever be, knowing as we do the enduring harm already caused by the use of other pain-inducing techniques against children in prison,” she said.

The charity is also calling for greater transparency around the use of PAVA, including publication of information about the ethnicity, age, religion and disability of children against whom it is deployed.

“For as long as PAVA is authorised for use in prisons holding children, there must be more transparency. The Howard League has been told it should make freedom of information requests for basic information that ought to be published regularly, in relation to ethnicity but also age, religion and disability. If ministers have confidence in this controversial policy, why are they so keen to evade public scrutiny?” Abbott said.

The government's decision to authorise PAVA in children’s prisons attracted criticism from a number of organisations when it was announced in April 2025. The Youth Justice Board, Children’s Commissioner for England, Independent Monitoring Boards and British Association of Social Workers all issued critical statements, while HM Inspectorate of Prisons said it had “serious concerns” about the move.

The Howard League also joined a joint statement signed by 37 organisations and individuals working in children’s rights and youth justice, which described the decision as “an abject failure in safeguarding those children held in custody”.

The charity said its concerns form part of wider questions about conditions and safeguards for children in custody. Figures it published in March 2026, also obtained through Freedom of Information requests, showed that children were typically being kept in their cells for about 20 hours a day and receiving less than 15 hours of education per week.