Children shouldn't be time-barred

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Campaigning for reform of the 6-month prosecution time limit that can affect some summary-only offences involving child victims under 16💜

Every child deserves the chance of justice.

19/10/2026

⚖️💜 CHILDREN, THE LAW & TIME LIMITS — PART 1

SECTION 127: WHAT DOES SIX MONTHS ACTUALLY MEAN?

✍️ SUPPORT OUR UK PARLIAMENT PETITION:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/771647

Did you know that in England and Wales, some criminal offences have a prosecution deadline of just SIX MONTHS, even when the victim is a child under 16?

This comes from Section 127 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980.

Our reel explains what this law means, which offences it can affect and what happens when the deadline expires.

There are exceptions, but being under 16 does not automatically extend the general deadline.

📖 Too quick to read? Pause the Reel on each slide.

📚 Official legislation:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/43/section/127

💜 Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice.

Please watch, share and help us raise awareness.

💜 A HUGE THANK YOU TO Castle Grange!Just look at the beautiful hearts created by the residents at Castle Grange, part of...
18/10/2026

💜 A HUGE THANK YOU TO Castle Grange!

Just look at the beautiful hearts created by the residents at Castle Grange, part of St Mary's Care Group 🥹

So much thought and creativity has gone into these, and it's lovely to see their display supporting our Wall of Hearts campaign.

Thank you to all the residents and staff for getting involved and helping spread our message.

Every heart and every bit of support means so much 💜

💜 ANOTHER LOVELY SHOW OF SUPPORT! 😍😍A big thank you to the residents and staff at Scarborough Hall Care Home - Barcheste...
18/10/2026

💜 ANOTHER LOVELY SHOW OF SUPPORT! 😍😍

A big thank you to the residents and staff at Scarborough Hall Care Home - Barchester Healthcare for including our Wall of Hearts campaign in their creative activities 🥰

It's wonderful to see people of all generations getting involved in raising awareness for child victims.

Thank you for taking the time to support Children shouldn't be time-barred. It's genuinely appreciated 💜

Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice. 🙏

💜 WE'RE IN AYCLIFFE ALTERNATIVE MAGAZINE!We're delighted to have Children shouldn't be time-barred featured in Issue 07 ...
17/10/2026

💜 WE'RE IN AYCLIFFE ALTERNATIVE MAGAZINE!

We're delighted to have Children shouldn't be time-barred featured in Issue 07 of Aycliffe Alternative Magazine.

Our campaign has been given four pages (5–8) to help explain why we're calling for a review of prosecution time limits affecting child victims under 16.

A huge thank you to Sarah Wingfield at Aycliffe Alternative Magazine for giving our campaign the opportunity to reach more people and raise awareness of an issue that deserves attention.

What started from my own daughter's experience is now reaching communities beyond our hometown, and every opportunity to share our message means so much. 💜

📖 Read the magazine here:
https://kawaiidolldecora.uk/aycliffe-alternative

✍️ Please support our UK Parliament petition:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/771647

🙏 If you have a moment, please read and share. You never know who our story might reach.

💜 Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice.

💜 HOW DO WE KNOW THIS IS A WIDER PROBLEM?BECAUSE I'VE SPENT MONTHS LOOKING FOR THE EVIDENCE.When I started Children shou...
11/10/2026

💜 HOW DO WE KNOW THIS IS A WIDER PROBLEM?

BECAUSE I'VE SPENT MONTHS LOOKING FOR THE EVIDENCE.

When I started Children shouldn't be time-barred, I couldn't find a clear national picture of how often prosecution time limits were affecting cases involving children under 16.

So I decided to investigate.

📁 Over the last couple of months, I've submitted Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to 43 police forces across England and Wales, as well as other organisations.

FOI requests allow members of the public to ask public authorities for information they hold.

I asked four questions about investigations recorded between 2020 and 2025, including how many involved child victims where a prosecution time limit had expired.

AND THE RESPONSES HAVE RAISED SERIOUS QUESTIONS.

Across the information returned, there are thousands of recorded cases and entries relating to this issue.

Some police forces reported hundreds of records individually.

But these figures need careful interpretation. Police forces record information differently, and not every record necessarily represents a separate child or a case that would otherwise have resulted in prosecution.

THAT DOESN'T MAKE THE QUESTIONS ANY LESS IMPORTANT.

These photographs show some of the work happening behind the scenes — the records, handwritten notes, comparisons and research I've been gathering.

This campaign began because of one child's experience.

BUT THE RESEARCH IS HELPING US LOOK AT A MUCH WIDER ISSUE.

I'm continuing to check the findings and will share more as the evidence is organised.

💜 WE'RE ASKING PARLIAMENT TO REVIEW WHETHER PROSECUTION TIME LIMITS PROPERLY ACCOUNT FOR CHILDREN UNDER 16.

Please read our petition and sign if you agree that this issue deserves a review. 🖊
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/771647

⏳ Petition closes 1 January 2027.

Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice. 💜

💜 ONE CHILD. THREE LEGAL HURDLES.When a child reports an assault, the law doesn't always allow the same amount of time f...
10/10/2026

💜 ONE CHILD. THREE LEGAL HURDLES.

When a child reports an assault, the law doesn't always allow the same amount of time for prosecution.

1️⃣ ACTUAL BODILY HARM (ABH)

A more serious assault offence with no ordinary 6-month prosecution limit. But the injury must meet the legal threshold for ABH.

2️⃣ COMMON ASSAULT

If the injury doesn't meet that threshold, common assault may be the appropriate offence.

⚠️ Prosecution normally must begin within 6 MONTHS — even when the victim is a child under 16.

3️⃣ DOMESTIC ABUSE

Certain domestic abuse-related common assault cases qualify for an extended prosecution deadline.

⚠️ But the law requires both people to be 16 or over. A child under 16 cannot benefit from that particular extension.

💜 SO WHAT CAN THIS MEAN FOR A CHILD?

❌ Injury doesn't meet the threshold for ABH.

❌ Common assault is the offence supported by the evidence.

❌ The child is too young for the domestic abuse extension.

❌ The six-month deadline passes — and prosecution for common assault may no longer be legally possible.

THE CHILD HASN'T RUN OUT OF REASONS TO NEED JUSTICE.

BUT THE LAW MAY HAVE RUN OUT OF TIME.

We're asking Parliament to review whether prosecution time limits properly account for children under 16.

💜 Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice.

📋 Read our petition:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/771647

💜 NO FURTHER ACTION.Those three words don't always tell the full story.A case can end for many reasons — including lack ...
07/10/2026

💜 NO FURTHER ACTION.

Those three words don't always tell the full story.

A case can end for many reasons — including lack of evidence, not meeting the legal test, or because a legal time limit has expired.

Our campaign isn't asking for every case to end in prosecution.

We're asking whether a child should lose the opportunity for their case to proceed simply because time ran out.

Changing a time limit wouldn't guarantee prosecution or conviction. The evidence and legal tests would still matter.

But time alone shouldn't close the door.

💜 Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice.

🪨💜 Our little campaign stones are ready to travel!We started by hiding some around Peasholm Park yesterday for you to fi...
05/10/2026

🪨💜 Our little campaign stones are ready to travel!

We started by hiding some around Peasholm Park yesterday for you to find 👀

If you spot one, take a photo and tag/send it to us — then keep it or re-hide it somewhere new and let's see how far our message can travel. 🙏

Each one has been done by hand with its own little message, children deserve time, their voices matter and every child deserves a chance at justice🥰

At the heart of it all is the reason we started - raising awareness of our campaign and UK Parliament petition. 🫶🫶

Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice. 💜

Three views.Three completely different moods. One beautiful Scarborough. 💙🌊🏰 by What's on in Scarborough
03/10/2026

Three views.
Three completely different moods.
One beautiful Scarborough.
💙🌊🏰

by What's on in Scarborough

03/10/2026

WHAT CAN A SUMMARY-ONLY ASSAULT ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE?

Sometimes the legal wording doesn't explain what may actually have happened.

Battery can include unlawful physical contact such as:

• Slapping
• Pushing or shoving
• Grabbing
• Pinching
• Hitting

Common assault can include making someone fear immediate violence — for example, raising a fist or threatening to hurt them there and then.

In England and Wales, common assault and battery are summary-only offences and are generally subject to a SIX-MONTH time limit for starting proceedings.

When the victim is a child, that's the issue our campaign is asking to be looked at.

“Summary-only” describes how an offence is dealt with in law. It doesn't tell you how frightening or upsetting the experience may have been for the child.

Every Child. Every Voice. Every Chance at Justice. 💜

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Scarborough

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