Being charged with a crime
Bail
When you鈥檙e waiting for a court hearing or a trial, you might be given bail. This means you can be released from custody until the hearing or the trial.
Bail from a police station
You can be given bail at the police station after you鈥檝e been charged. This means you鈥檒l be released from custody until your first court hearing.
If you鈥檙e given bail, you might have to agree to conditions like:
- living at a particular address
- not contacting certain people
- giving your passport to the police so you cannot leave the UK
- reporting to a police station at agreed times, for example once a week
If you do not stick to these conditions you can be arrested again and be taken to prison to wait for your court hearing.
Bail from a court
When you鈥檝e been charged and you attend your hearing at a magistrates鈥� court, you might be given bail until your trial begins.
You may not be given bail if:
- you鈥檝e been convicted of a crime in the past
- you鈥檝e been given bail in the past and not stuck to the terms
- the court thinks you might not turn up for your next hearing
- the court thinks you might commit a crime while you鈥檙e on bail
If you鈥檙e given bail, you might have to agree to conditions like:
- living at a particular address
- not contacting certain people
- giving up your passport so you cannot leave the UK
If you do not stick to these conditions, you can be arrested again. You鈥檒l stay in police custody until you鈥檙e given another court hearing.
The court may put different conditions in place for your bail or keep you in prison until your trial starts.
If you鈥檙e under 18
The police will explain the rules that you have to follow and what will happen if you do not. They will also tell you whether you have temporarily become a 鈥榣ooked after child鈥� and what this means.
If you鈥檙e not released from custody, your local authority and the Youth Justice Service must try to find a safe and secure space for you (for example, with a relative, in foster care or in a children鈥檚 home). You must stay there until the next available court hearing, which is normally the next day.
If you are not moved to a secure space, you will stay at the police station. The police must present a certificate to the court to explain why you鈥檝e been kept there.