Scotland's chief prisons inspector has called for an end to the exclusion of children from schools.
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons (HMIP) Brigadier Hugh Monro said there were "far too many young people" in jail and warned that exclusion from school and wider society was "driving them to get into trouble".
His comments came as he published his 2010/11 annual report on Scotland's prisons.
Brigadier Monro also repeated his previous calls for a national sex offenders' strategy in order to address inmates' access to rehabilitation programmes and subsequent release back into communities.
His report also outlined concerns over progress at Cornton Vale women's prison in Stirling, which was inspected in January 2010 and again in a follow-up in February 2011.
Problems at the jail included overcrowding and "unacceptable" living conditions.
Speaking at the launch of his report in Edinburgh, Brigadier Monro said: "There are far too many young people in prison. Youngsters who should be included and contributing to, not being held by, the state.
"I think it is that exclusion that drives them into getting into trouble."
Brigadier Monro said all the young offenders he had met had been excluded from school and many had grown up around a "culture of violence". He pointed to programmes which promote inclusion as a way forward.
"My belief is that if you include challenging children and you give them a range of activities, some boundaries, perhaps you also include their families in terms of a whole range of issues such as diet, behaviour and homework," he said.