ARRESTS of children by police in Cornwall and Devon have fallen by more than two thirds in the last four years.
According to data obtained by the Howard League for Penal Reform, the number of arrests in the two counties dropped from 4,132 in 2010 to 1,470 in 2014 - a fall of 64%.
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said the figures reflected the success of hard work done to keep young people out of the criminal justice system.
"We have worked extensively with partners to reduce the amount of children we are coming into contact with from a criminal justice perspective," said the spokesman.
"We are also trying to work with schools so that any contact with police happens before an arrest or before harsher criminal justice measures come into force.
"We also work with restorative justice so that what are often low level offences are dealt with responsibly and proportionally.
"A police cell is never a good place for a child to be however, if it is a serious crime it has to be dealt with appropriately."
The Howard League said the drop demonstrated that their programme of work to keep as many children as possible out of the criminal justice system was a success.
Frances Crook, chief executive of the campaigning group, said the police should not be the first call for children exhibiting challenging behaviour.
"It is for parents and schools to deal with normal childish challenging behaviour, not the police," he said.
"It is to the credit of the police that they have introduced restorative approaches and given front line officers discretion to make professional decisions."
Nationally every police service in England and Wales made fewer arrests in 2014 than in 2010, with some constabularies reducing their numbers by more than 70%.
Several police services have reviewed their arrest procedures and policies as a result of the Howard League's engagement with them.
Child arrest figures for Devon and Cornwall Police:
2010: 4,132
2011: 3,363
2012: 2,398
2013: 1,431
2014: 1,470
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