CHILD CRIME RISES

Offences by under-10s up 30%

- BY SASKIA ROWLANDS and MATTHEW DAVIES

THE number of crimes being committed by kids under 10 has soared 30% in five years.

There were 9,544 offences recorded last year by children aged nine or younger - but police could not take action.

This was a rise of 30% on the 7,370 under-10 crimes recorded in 2019, before the pandemic, and an 18% rise since 2022's tally of 8,064, Home Office figures show.