Staff members from the G4S security group punched and slapped children in a series of incidents amounting to abuse and mistreatment of the young people in their charge, it has been claimed. Seven workers at the Medway Secure Training Centre in Rochester have been suspended over the allegations, which stem from as-yet unaired undercover filming by the BBC’s Panorama programme. It has been reported that staff members punched one child in the ribs and another was slapped several times on the head, with police in Kent saying they have been made aware of the claims of “unnecessary use of force and the use of improper language” at the facility. The centre is managed jointly by the Youth Justice Board and G4S contractors, and the government has suspended the placement of new youngsters at the facility until the claims are investigated...