The Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Act 2020: April 2023 to March 2024

The Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Act (the Act) received Royal Assent in March 2020 and, after a two-year implementation period, came into force on 21 March 2022.

The overarching objective of the legislation is to help protect children’s rights by prohibiting the use of physical punishment against children, through the removal of the defence of reasonable punishment. This means that the defence is no longer available within the territory of Wales to parents or those acting in loco parentis (acting with parental responsibility), as a defence to a charge of common assault and battery on a child in their care.

Section 3 of the Act requires Welsh Ministers to prepare, and lay before the Senedd, two reports on the effect of the Act. These must be produced as soon as practicable three and five years after the Act came into force (2025 and 2027). 

To support these reports the Welsh Government collects data from local authorities, the police, and the Crown Prosecution Service to measure the impact that the Act has on public services. This report summarises data collected for the second 12 months following the Act coming into force, covering the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

The Out of Court Parenting Support Grant has been offered by the Welsh Government to local authorities since March 2022. The grant was created in preparation for the Act coming into force. It funds bespoke parenting support which the police can refer people to as an alternative to prosecution, in cases where the police decide it is appropriate to offer an out of court disposal. 

Local authorities record data about the number of referrals for parenting support received from the police, take up and completion rates and outcomes for individuals. Demographic data and data about requests for the intervention through the medium of Welsh are also collected. A summary of this data for the second year since the Act came into force is presented below. Some individuals have disengaged from the support before completion of the sessions, with no intention of completing in the future. This means that the number of individuals who have completed and partially completed the sessions may be less than the total number of individuals who chose to take up the offer of parenting support.

The data should be interpreted with caution given that it relates to one year only. All numbers relating to out of court parenting support are rounded to the nearest five to minimise any risk of data disclosure. Due to the numbers being rounded to the nearest five, the sum of any percentages may come to more than 100%.

125 individuals were newly referred for out of court parenting support in this reporting year.

115 new individuals took up the offer of parenting support and 20 individuals continued to access the support from the previous reporting year.

Of these 135 individuals, 110 individuals completed the sessions fully. 20 individuals have partially completed the sessions and will continue to access the support in the following reporting year.

90 of the individuals who completed the sessions self-reported a positive outcome in a post support questionnaire. Figures on the total number of questionnaires completed are not available.

During the second year following the Act coming into force, there were 125 new referrals for out of court parenting support across Wales by the police. 

Between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024, 115 new individuals chose to take up the offer of parenting support. 20 individuals had partially completed the sessions in the previous year and continued to access the support between April 2023 and March 2024. Of these 135 individuals, 110 have fully completed the sessions and 20 have partially completed the sessions and will continue to access the support in the following reporting year. 

Of the individuals who were accessing the parenting support between April 2023 and March 2024, 84% of the individuals identified as “White” and 7% identified as “Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African”. Fewer than 5 individuals identified in each of the groups “Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups”, “Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh” or “Other ethnic group”. Half of the individuals (50%) were male and 50% were female. The proportion of disabled people was 7%.

Fewer than 5 requests for parenting support through the medium of Welsh were made.

Individuals completing the parenting support are asked to complete a post support questionnaire issued by local authorities. Figures on the total number of completed questionnaires is not available. The latest data on this shows that 90 of the individuals who completed the questionnaire self-reported a positive outcome. This is defined as an improvement in the child’s behaviour, or in parental wellbeing or efficacy.

Please note, the 2023-24 data and previous years of social services data are not comparable. Fewer local authorities provided data in 2021-22 and some only provided data for six months. Some local authorities also reported changes in how assessments were undertaken and reported between the years. Two local authorities that provided data for 2023-24 reported possible recording issues, whilst others reported greater compliance and improved data capture.

Data relates to contacts and assessments for children who were not in receipt of care and support at the time of contact or assessment. However, one local authority included re-assessments in 2021-22 and 2022-23. The same child may be counted more than once (if there were multiple relevant contacts or assessments).

In the second year following the Act coming into force, 2023-24, there were 5,628 contacts to social services recorded where physical punishment of children by a parent or carer was one of several factors. In just over half of these (2,848) physical punishment was recorded as the only factor. The most recent figures are available on StatsWales: number of contacts received during the year where physical punishment was a factor, by local authority. Please note that not all local authorities were able to provide data.

In the second year following the Act coming into force, 2023-24, there were 3,447 assessments completed by social services where physical punishment of children by a parent or carer was one of several factors. In just over 40% of these (1,475), physical punishment was recorded as the only factor. The most recent figures are available on StatsWales: number of assessments completed during the year where physical punishment was a factor, by local authority.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in Wales are able to monitor the number of cases relating to the Act which are referred to them, as well how many of these cases are charged, and what the outcomes of these cases are.

It is not currently possible to publish figures relating to referrals to the CPS in Wales, as the number reported is fewer than five, posing a risk to personal information being disclosed.

Report authors: Chloe Whiteley

Views expressed in this report are those of the researchers and not necessarily those of the Welsh Government.

For further information please contact:

Dan Boon
Equality, Poverty and Children’s Evidence and Support Division
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ

Email: Research.ChildrenAndFamilies@gov.wales

Social research number: 74/2025
Digital ISBN: 978-1-80633-014-0