Published on
26 February 2025
In 2025, it cannot be right that children, the youngest and most vulnerable group in society, are the least protected from physical assault.
Leading organisations working in child health, child protection and safeguarding, human rights, mental health, youth advocacy, social care and more have jointly developed this briefing for parliamentarians to support our shared call to remove the “reasonable punishment” defence from law in England.
We call on MPs to support our campaign to give children in England equal protection from assault as part of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
Key messages
- Evidence shows that the physical punishment of children is harmful.
- Despite this, physical punishment remains lawful by virtue of the ‘reasonable punishment’ defence – an exception to the law of assault. This leaves children with less protection from assault than adults.
- The law as it stands is unclear and open to interpretation, with this ambiguity a feature of safeguarding practice reviews.
- To achieve its intention to ‘make provision about the safeguarding and welfare of children’, MPs have sought to amend the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to remove the ‘reasonable punishment’ defence and are now encouraging wider MP support before the Bill is debated at Report Stage.
- This would give children equal protection from assault, to protect them from harm and to promote their health and wellbeing.