IT COSTS more to cage a teenage killer than put them up at The Ritz, shock figures reveal.
Taxpayers foot an annual bill of £336,000 — £921 per night — to keep a young lag at a Secure Training Centre.
PA:Press AssociationPlaces at Oakhill Secure Training Centre, near Milton Keynes, Bucks, are the most expensive in the prison estate[/caption]
A room at London’s Ritz can cost £775 a night, or £900 for a “superior twin” room.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Taxpayers will find these figures difficult to believe.
“Keeping dangerous child prisoners locked up is inevitably going to be expensive, but the current cost cited is so high that inefficiencies must be present.
“At the very least, the Prison Service needs to be transparent as to why costs are so high.”
Places at Oakhill Secure Training Centre, near Milton Keynes, Bucks, are the most expensive in the prison estate — costing seven times the £122 per night for some adult jails.
Those there are believed to include two 13-year-old machete murderers of Shawn Seesahai, 19 — attacked in Wolverhampton in 2023.
It is run by private firm G4S, holds up to 80 children and is currently the country’s only operational STC.
Ministry of Justice figures also show a place at a Secure Children’s Home works out at £887 a night
Young Offender Institutions come in at £329.
A spokesman said: “Children in custody are largely there for serious offences and have needs requiring more support.”
Peter Jordan – The SunA room at London’s Ritz can cost £775 a night, or £900 for a ‘superior twin’ room[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
