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Beyond parental control or BPC refers to a child or young person who is below the age of
16 years who may be in persistent conflict with his/her parent/s and School or other authorities and who may be displaying at risk behaviours. This conflict or at risk behaviour may lead to a breakdown in the relationship and communication between the child/young person and his/her parent/s. It may result in the inability of the parent/s to exercise care and control over the child/young person. In these circumstances, the parent/s can apply to the Juvenile (Children Care) Court for a BPC order.

In filing a BPC complaint¹, the parent/s and the child/young person may be put through diversionary programmes such as the pre-complaint counselling and the Beaconworks programme². These are measures to minimise the child/young person’s exposure to the judicial system. Should the diversionary measures fail, the Juvenile (Children Care) Court can place the child/young person on Statutory Supervision or admit him/her into a residential facility for those who display very high risk behaviours.

The total number of new BPC cases has been on the downtrend since 2006. Specifically, the total number of new cases fell by 57% from 147 cases in 2006 to 63 cases in 2010. Interestingly, the proportion of male new BPC cases decreased by 20 percentage points from 2006 to 2010 while that of female new cases increased by the same magnitude over the same period. Analysis by age breakdown suggests that about half of the new BPC cases are usually filed by parents whose children are aged 13-14 years, followed by about 4 in 10 filed by parents whose children are aged 15-16 years old.

Download Beyond Parental Control data in Excel (67KB)

New Beyond Parental Control Cases by Gender

New Beyond Parental Control Cases by Age

Age	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011p
9-10 years	5	1	1	-	3
11-12 years	11	14	10	4	8
13-14 years	68	58	40	32	36
15-16 years	56	48	40	27	23
Total	140	121	91	63	70

Source: Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports

Statistics correct as at 15 Feb 2011.

Footnote:
¹A BPC complaint refers to a situation where the parents had filled a BPC concerning the child but is pending court's decision. A BPC case refers to a situation where court has issued a BPC order concerning the child.

²The BeaconWorks Programme is for families with children who have serious and persistent disciplinary problems, and helps parents and children work on their strained relationships. Parents and children who voluntarily admit themselves to this programme will undergo 6-months of counselling and case work, and if the situation improves after the programme, parents can avoid filing a "Beyond Parent Control Complaint" with the Juvenile Court.