The routine use of police stop powers has become a defining feature of contemporary policing in England and Wales.
But while often defended as a necessary tool for preventing crime and ensuring public safety, growing evidence suggests these early encounters with police can carry unintended, long-term consequences—especially when they occur during adolescence.
Our recent study, based on data from the UK’s Millennium Cohort Study, investigated some potential life-course implications of being stopped by the police before the age of 14. We followed over 9,000 young people in England and Wales to assess how early police contact was associated with their offending behaviour, educational aspirations and mental health by age 17. The results are troubling—and highlight the need for urgent policy reflection.
Who gets stopped and why?
The analysis found that early experiences with police stops, before age 14, were more likely among young people who reported violent or non-violent offending, knife carrying, gang association, and the use of alcohol or cannabis. Boys, those who felt unsafe in their local areas, and those with previous experiences of victimisation were also more likely to report having been stopped by police.
Interestingly, when controlling for these behaviours and social factors, ethnicity was not a statistically significant predictor of being stopped. This may reflect the broader measure of ‘being stopped and questioned’ used in our study, rather than the more intrusive and racially disproportionate practice of stop-and-search, which official statistics has shown disproportionately affects Black and minority ethnic youth.
The long shadow of early police contact
Being stopped by police at a young age was associated with a higher likelihood of violent offending at age 17—even after accounting for previous offending behaviour and other key factors. The same early contact was also linked to lower educational aspirations: young people who had been stopped were significantly less likely to believe they would go to university.
The consequences weren’t limited to behaviours or aspirations. We found a clear association between early police stops and externalising mental health symptoms—namely, increased levels of conduct problems and hyperactivity. These outward-facing psychological difficulties are consistent with a growing body of research linking police contact to emotional strain, reduced self-esteem, and changes in identity formation during adolescence.
That said, we did not find strong links to internalising mental health problems like depression or anxiety—suggesting that the psychological toll of early police contact may manifest more in behavioural disruptions than in emotional distress, at least by age 17.
Disruption, not deterrence
The study builds on theoretical perspectives such as the labelling theory, which holds that early encounters with police can shape a young person’s self-concept in damaging ways. Being stopped—even if no crime has been committed—may reinforce a deviant identity, reduce trust in institutions and limit engagement with prosocial opportunities like education.
Similarly, the life-course theory of cumulative disadvantage suggests that these seemingly minor disruptions can snowball into longer-term challenges—creating a pipeline of exclusion, disengagement, and marginalisation that fosters cynicism about the law and the legal institutions.
A child-centred approach to safety
These findings call into question the effectiveness and proportionality of using stop powers on children and young people. If such encounters contribute to future offending, reduce educational ambition, and negatively impact mental health, their preventative value is at best limited—and at worst, counterproductive.
What’s needed is a child-centred approach that avoids criminalising adolescents for behaviours better addressed through health, education or social care. Where police contact is necessary, it must be proportionate, respectful, and trauma-informed—minimising harm and upholding young people’s rights.
More broadly, we must re-evaluate the role of police in responding to youth vulnerability. Preventing harm and promoting public safety requires investment in the underlying social conditions—safe housing, education, mental health support—not just reactive enforcement or proactive policing.
Conclusion
While much of the discourse around policing young people focuses on crime control, our findings suggest that early contact with police can potentially lead to more harm than good. Stopping and questioning adolescents—especially in the absence of wrongdoing—risks entrenching the very behaviours and outcomes it aims to prevent. It is time we paid closer attention to the unintended, long-term consequences of these everyday encounters and started designing systems that truly serve the best interests of young people
