DOZENS of children have been employed illegally in Cornwall

and Devon, according to a campaign to crack down on illegal

child employment.

Inquiries by juvenile employment officers and education

welfare officers found 20 children being employed illegally in

Cornwall and 145 in Devon.

The discoveries were made after two officers made 120 visits

to employers in Cornwall during July and August and 26 officers

made 625 visits to employers in Devon.

They found that 263 children were being employed, 145 of

them illegally. Sixty-five did not have permits and 80 were

working contrary to hours allowed. Most of them were working in

tourism-related employment including surf and gift shops. None

of their employers has been prosecuted.

It is not clear what wages the children were earning as

there is no legal minimum wage for them and therefore no need

for employers to keep records.

Two applications to employ children in Cornwall in the

construction industry were recently rejected as that is

prohibited for youngsters – as is kitchen work.

Paul Kirkman, a spokesman for the National Network for Child

Employment and Entertainment (NNCEE) which led the campaign,

said councils were responsible for the welfare of children in

their area.

He said: "Some local authorities do not give child

employment the priority and resources that it deserves.

"For instance, for the whole of Cornwall there is only one

part-time juvenile employment officer.

"A national campaign is needed to highlight the importance

of complying with the legislation and further educate

ill-informed employers and parents of the legal requirements to

ensure all children are safe and protected when working."

Mr Kirkman said nearly 60 children in the UK were seriously

injured or killed each year while working.

These include a school-aged pupil who was very seriously

burnt working in a kitchen, and a boy who had the nerves and

tendons in his hand severed when he slipped and fell while

delivering milk.

Both were being employed illegally and without work permits

and, therefore, were not covered by the employer's

insurance.

As a result they did not receive compensation for their

injuries.

As part of the hard-hitting NNCEE's Child Employment Week

campaign, 174 officers visited 2,779 employers nationwide and

found 950 children working.

Of these, 399 were being employed illegally without work

permits, with 16 children working in prohibited occupations and

101 others working in excess of the hours allowed.

The campaign involved officers writing to and visiting

employers, handing out leaflets and information packs, manning

information stands in local shopping centres, issuing press

releases and taking part in radio and TV interviews to help

raise awareness of the regulations governing employment of

school aged children.

Mr Kirkman said: "Officers found most of the employers were

unaware of the legislation regarding the employment of school

aged children and the legal requirement of a work permit.

"The work permit is one way in which the local authority can

be aware of children being employed and, therefore, able to

monitor the hours that they work and the occupation in which

they are employed.

"All the employers were given advice and guidance on the

regulations.

"We will be revisiting 343 of these employers in the near

future to check they have acted on the advice they were given

and have issued employment permits and cards."

Employers who do not comply can face a fine £1,000 per

child.

Cornwall's Children's Services Authority assistant director

Steve Colwill said: "We urge employers in Cornwall to seek

advice from our child employment officer if they have any

concerns or questions regarding the employment of children

under the age of 16"

A Devon County Council spokesman said of employers caught

employing children illegally: "We take illegal children

employment very seriously.

"After a first warning, we write again to the employers

warning them of the legal consequences they face. If they still

don't comply then we will launch our own investigation and

start court proceedings."