A children’s charity has launched legal action against Islington Council, accusing it of failing to house a vulnerable 14-year-old boy being held in police cells.

In a statement today, Just For Kids Law said the “vulnerable boy was kept in a cell overnight on multiple occasions since March this year, because Islington failed to provide any alternative accommodation for him”.

The charity also claimed Islington received 94 requests from the Met to provide a bed for a child being held at police stations – yet they did not accommodate a single one of these children.

A council spokesperson said this afternoon: “Islington Council believes the safeguarding of young people is paramount, but cannot comment further while legal proceedings are underway.”

Just for Kids Law director Shauneen Lambe said: “A police cell designed for an adult is no place for a child. Everyone, from the new Prime Minister to the police lead for children, agrees that children and young people are particularly vulnerable and need to be kept safe after arrest. Yet laws designed to protect them are being ignored up and down the country, every day of the year.

“Often it is because local authorities are failing to accommodate them when asked to do so. That is why we have begun action against Islington Council. We will take similar steps against other local authorities, unless they start complying with their legal duties.”