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This guidance provides information on Child Criminal Exploitation, including county lines. It describes the signs and indicators that children are being exploited, and offers guidance for staff on how they can respond to keep children safe from harm linked to criminal exploitation.
This chapter was added in May 2024.
The Home Office defines Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) as:
Child Criminal Exploitation…occurs where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, control, manipulate or deceive a child or young person under the age of 18 into any criminal activity (a) in exchange for something the victim needs or wants, and/or (b) for the financial or other advantage of the perpetrator or facilitator and/or (c) through violence or the threat of violence. The victim may have been criminally exploited even if the activity appears consensual.
Child Criminal Exploitation does not always involve physical contact; it can also occur through the use of technology. Criminal exploitation often happens alongside sexual or other forms of exploitation.
Child Criminal Exploitation is broader than just county lines and includes for instance children forced to work on cannabis farms, to commit theft, shoplift or pickpocket, or to threaten other young people.
County lines is a form of Child Criminal Exploitation. It is a term used to describe the activities of gangs and organised criminal networks who are involved in exporting illegal drugs into one or more importing areas (within the UK), using dedicated mobile phone lines or other forms of "deal line". These gangs exploit children and vulnerable adults to move (and store) drugs and money, and they will often use coercion, intimidation, violence (including sexual violence) and weapons (County lines: criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults, Home Office 2018). This activity can happen locally as well as across the UK; no specified distance of travel is required.
The adults running these networks remain at a distance from the frontline activity of drug dealing, reducing the risk of being caught and instead - they exploit vulnerable children who are at high risk of significant harm transporting and selling drugs, often many miles from home.
Children may be sent to another area of the country to live with a vulnerable adult whose home has been taken over by the gang in exchange for a continued supply of drugs. This is known as 'cuckooing'. These environments are extremely dangerous for children.
County lines activity is a dynamic and lucrative activity, and perpetrators will change their methods of exploitation quickly. As practitioners become more responsive to identifying children at risk, the criminals adapt their tactics. For example, a child who is exploited can leave the Home in the morning, sell drugs and return the same day and so avoid being reported missing.
There are high levels of violence and intimidation linked to county lines activity. Children can be very quickly groomed into criminal activity, often before parents, carers or practitioners realise what is happening.
All criminally exploited children are at risk of neglect, emotional harm, sexual exploitation and abuse, as well as substance misuse and extreme forms of violence.
Any child or young person may be at risk of criminal exploitation, regardless of their family background or other circumstances, but children who are Looked After or who are excluded from mainstream education are at increased risk of being targeted.
Like other forms of abuse and exploitation, county lines exploitation:
Perpetrators are known to target vulnerable children and adults; some of the factors that heighten vulnerability include:
It is thought that 14-17 years is the most common age for children to be exploited but there are reports of children below the age of 11 years being targeted.
Boys are most commonly identified as being criminally exploited, but girls are also used and exploited. It may be that girls are identified by safeguarding children agencies because of concerns other than criminal exploitation while also being criminally exploited.
Some of the main warning signs that a child or young person is involved in county lines or being exploited are listed below, with those at the top of particular concern:
When concerns about criminal exploitation have been identified, the child's Placement Plan should contain details of the day to day arrangements which have been agreed between the Home and the placing authority to keep the child safe.
If any staff working in the Home have concerns that a child is involved in, or at risk of involvement in CCE they should discuss these with the manager or safeguarding lead. These concerns should then be shared with the child's allocated social worker, the child's Independent Reviewing Officer and also Children's Social Care / the police. If staff have concerns that a child is in immediate danger, they should always ring 999.
All concerns and other relevant information should be noted in the child's records so that any patterns over time can be identified.
Sharing intelligence and information is crucial to preventing criminal exploitation in the local area. It is only by sharing data that agencies can develop an understanding of the prevalence, nature and scale of criminal exploitation and county lines activity.
An early, coordinated response to any child who has been criminally exploited is really important for the child, and other children linked to them - including other children living in the Home.
The Home Office has published guidance for safeguarding agencies in the Child exploitation disruption toolkit. The toolkit is primarily aimed at frontline staff, including law enforcement, social care, education, housing and the voluntary sector, working to safeguard children and children under the age of 18 from sexual and criminal exploitation.
Children's needs and safety must always come first. This means that staff working in the Home should respond flexibly and continue to 'stay with the child', even when they are unwilling to engage. Relationships between children and their carers which are based on consistency, stability and respectful communication will help in supporting effective interventions with exploited children.
When a child presents with offending, or other concerning behaviour, staff need to be curious and compassionate and ask: What is happening in this child's life that is causing them to behave this way? What can we do to help them?
Children who have been criminally exploited are the victims of crime (although they may not initially see themselves as such).
All practitioners working with the child should consider the context of the child's behaviour as well as the impact (for example, trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), mental health issues or substance misuse), to help determine an effective response. This is particularly relevant for children exploited through county lines activity.
Staff and managers should consider whether other children in the Home may also be at risk (exploited children can be pressured to 'recruit' others). Any concerns should be shared with Children's Social Care and the allocated social workers.
For some children, a move to a different home may need to be considered. This should be discussed with the child, their parents / carers, the allocated social worker and the Independent Reviewing Officer.
For children who are leaving care, the Personal Adviser should be made aware of the concerns so that they can continue to offer support when the young person moves to independent or semi independent accommodation.
Protecting children from criminal exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery (GOV.UK) - thematic report from Joint Inspections on the risk of child criminal exploitation.
Criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults: county lines (GOV.UK) - Guidance for frontline professionals on dealing with county lines, part of the government's approach to ending gang violence and exploitation.
Child exploitation disruption toolkit (The Home Office) - Disruption tactics for those working to safeguard children and young people under the age of 18 from sexual and criminal exploitation.
County lines exploitation: guidance for practitioners (Ministry of Justice) - Practice guidance for Youth Offending Teams and frontline practitioners.
County lines exploitation: practice guidance poster (Ministry of Justice) - Note: not all processes included may be applicable to your local area, so please refer to your local CCE Pathway as well.
Children and Young People Trafficked for the Purpose of Criminal Exploitation in Relation to County Lines a Toolkit For Professionals - (The Children's Society in partnership with Victim Support and the National Police Chiefs' Council) - a number of resources that may be useful for professionals when working with children and young people, their families and communities at risk of abuse and exploitation.
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