The Gladstone Committee (1895) proposed the concept, wishing to separate youths from older males in adult prisons, and the first school was established at Borstal Prison in Borstal, near Rochester in north Kent in 1902.
The regime in these institutions was highly regulated, with a focus on education, routine, discipline and authority. Breaking the rules could result in physical punishment.
The Criminal Justice Act 1982 abolished the borstal system, introducing 'Youth Custody Centres' instead.