POLICE in Northamptonshire take 10 DNA swabs a week from children aged 17 or under, according to figures published today.
Research by the Howard League for Penal Reform, using the Freedom of Information Act, found officers took swabs from 496 boys and girls during 2011 - the most recent available figures - which was actually a marked fall on the previous year when 666 were taken.
They included 16 primary school-age children - three 10-year-olds and 13 11-year-olds.
The Northamptonshire figure was part of an overall one for England and Wales in 2011 when police took swabs from almost 54,000 children.
According to the Howard League, many of the children required to give a sample will not have been charged with a criminal offence.
Under current rules, police can retain indefinitely the DNA of anyone they arrest for a recordable offence although a new law, imposing tighter restrictions on DNA retention, is expected to come into force later this year.
Frances Crook, Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “When public money is tight and police forces are shrinking, it is disappointing to see valuable crime-fighting resources being wasted on taking DNA samples from thousands of innocent children while serious offences go undetected.
“Children who get into trouble with the police are usually just up to mischief. Treating so many like hardened criminals by taking their DNA seems excessive.
“We welcome the Government’s decision to stop storing innocent people’s DNA indefinitely, but it remains unclear how this will affect the number of children having their DNA taken needlessly.”