THE misunderstanding around children with complex mental health issues can be highlighted in the case of a young boy who was detained in a police van after lashing out in Barrow town centre.

The 11-year-old boy was put in the back of the vehicle and transported to Furness General Hospital after getting distressed and out of control due to his autistic spectrum disorder.

The boy's family were unable to calm him down and they are worried about him being criminalised because of his disability in the future.

During the incident, the boy sustained an injury and inadvertently hurt a family relative.

A statement from his family about the incident said: "It was distressing. He has challenging behaviour.

"There's a lot of misunderstanding around mental health. There is this stigma still. It is so overlooked. 

"Children especially need special support.

"The last thing they need is to see police officers in uniform."

The family have called for society to better understand the complexity of dealing with vulnerable children, and for more trained care and psychological staff to be on hand to deal with similar emergencies in the future.

The distinction between criminal behaviour and mental health needs clarifying, they say.