Police ask for everyone’s help in tackling child exploitation
Date: 20 April 2023
Our health leaders joined local authorities, social care organisations and charities at the launch last week of South Yorkshire Police’s new collaborative campaign to tackle child exploitation.
The campaign ‘Exploitation Destroys Childhoods’ calls on all our health and care organisations to look out for signs that children in our communities are being abused in this way and to share their concerns.
The campaign explains that child exploitation is a type of child abuse. When a child or young person is exploited, they are groomed by criminals - being given things like money, presents, drugs or alcohol, affection, or perceived status. These things are given as a manipulation tactic to convince them to do something for their abuser, or their associates.
The police force, which has recently been graded as ‘outstanding’ in Protecting Vulnerable People by His Majesty’s Inspectorate, has developed the campaign alongside local partners and with the help of Rotherham CSE survivors.
It encourages people to look past any misconceptions they have around a ‘typical’ victim of exploitation, or a ‘typical’ offender – offences can be committed by men and women of all ages and from any background.
Assistant Chief Constable for crime, Sarah Poolman said: “These are complex crimes and cannot be tackled overnight, nor can they be addressed in isolation.
“We rely heavily on people coming forward and sharing concerns so our dedicated teams can act on reports. Every detail forms part of a bigger picture which enables us to identify patterns, perpetrators, and potential victims.”
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the early warning signs of different forms of child exploitation including child criminal exploitation (CCE), child sexual exploitation (CSE) and county lines drug dealing. It encourages people to look out for these signs, report concerns and access support.
For more information about the campaign, visit: https://www.southyorks.police.uk/find-out/stop-exploitation/