Protecting children from sexual exploitation

1. Protecting children from sexual exploitation Carlene Firmin MBE Head of the MsUnderstood Partnership

2. Presentation Outline • Protecting from what: case studies of CSE • Tier 1: Prevention as protection • Tier 2: Early help as protection • Tier 3: Intervention as protection • Tier 4: Exit as protection • Tier 5: Recovery and protection • Models of CSE and implications for protection • What’s worked well • Current challenges – protection from individuals, groups and spaces • Implications for policy and practice BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

3. Protection - Definition Oxford Dictionary noun • [mass noun] the action of protecting, or the state of being protected: FOR EXAMPLE: the B vitamins give protection against infection OR his son was put under police protection [count noun] (usually protections) a legal or other formal measure intended to preserve civil liberties and UNCRC Article 34:States Parties undertake to protect the child from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

4. Case Example 1: Ruth • Ruth is 13 years old and living in residential care • Is groomed by a 20 year old male and perceives him as her boyfriend • The 20 year old male the passes Ruth onto a wider network of adult men • Ruth is trafficked around the country to ‘parties’ where she is sold for sexual activity • The network makes financial gain from the exploitation • Alcohol, threats and violence are used to ensure compliance • 8 men are convicted once Ruth is an adult, Ruth now lives in another part of the country BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

5. Case Example 2: Mark • Mark is 15 years old and lives with his parents • He strikes up a ‘friendship’ with an older man who recognises that Mark identifies as a ‘gay young man’ • Mark is groomed by the older man for two years before sexual activity starts • The older man then takes Mark to the houses of his friends to whom he sells Mark • Mark’s parent’s threaten a forced marriage when they find out and Mark is taken into care • The older man, and his friends, are yet to be charged or prosecuted BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

6. Case Example 3: Cecile • Aged 11 and in first year of secondary school • Makes friends with a group of boys aged 13-15 all of whom are gang-associated and linked to adult gang members • Over a 10 month period is sexually exploited by ten of these boys (alongside other peers) • Public space sexual violence • Coercion into offending (robbery and weapon carrying) • Threats online and in person • Physical violence and emotional abuse • Three boys convicted and Cecile moved BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

7. So what do we mean by protection for: • Ruth • Mark • Cecile • AND THEIR PEERS BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

8. Tier 1: Prevention as Protection Cecile, Ruth and Mark would have been protected if their exploitation had been prevented in the first place through: • PSHE • Identification of CSA • Support in relation to sexuality and identity • Whole school approaches to gender equality • Identification and apprehension of adults who pose a risk to children (both the boys and the girls) BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

9. Tier 2: Early Help as Protection Cecile, Ruth and Mark would have been protected if early-help had been offered to address their vulnerability through: • Treatment and support for impact of CSA • Interruption of recruitment of ‘gang members’ • Youth service provision and spaces for conversation • Response to school absence BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

10. Tier 3: Intervention as Protection Cecile and Mark received an intervention following/during their exploitation and were protected from some aspects of their abuse: • Both were referred to specialist sexual violence and exploitation services • These services took a therapeutic approach to working with them and focused on securing safety and stabilisation • In Cecile’s case some of the those who had exploited her were arrested and remanded in custody • Harassment and abduction notices, plus licensing also used BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

11. Tier 4: Exit as Protection Cecile and Mark were offered exit strategies as part of their protection: • Cecile and her family were moved out of the area that she lived in, and Cecile was later taken into care • Mark was taken into local authority care and placed in a residential children’s home outside of the area he lived • Ruth moved of her own accord as she got older BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

12. Tier 5: Recovery as Protection In order to protect Cecile, Ruth and Mark from re-victimisation and on-going trauma, the following issues needed to be addressed: • Emerging personality disorder (Ruth) • Coping strategies: cutting (Ruth, Cecile), alcohol use (Ruth) • Eating-Disorder (Mark) • Disengagement from education (all three) BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

13. Models of CSE and implications for protection • Containment • Re-victimisation through networks • Unsafe neighbourhoods or schools (movement from home or school environment) • Work with young people who are exploiting • Protection of bystanders and witnesses • Protection without the criminal justice process? BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

14. What’s working well FOCUSED AT THE INTERVENTION STAGE • Disruption of adult offenders • Monitoring of online spaces • Movement when required • Use of licensing • Increased awareness and alertness as a result or public debate • Pockets of specialist interventions BASW Oct 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

15. Challenges: groups and spaces • Risk permeates environments, networks and groups – challenge in containment • Re-engagement in education and peer groups • Measuring vulnerabilities and/or strengths as a mean of protection • Engagement with bystanders as means of protection • Creating ‘victim vacuums’ rather than changing the space at all • GAPS: Prevention, early-help, exit and recovery BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

16. Groups and other spaces • EXPERIENCE • POWER • SAFETY • GENDER • HARM BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

17. Implications: Cross-Cutting Policy and Practice Issue in England BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

18. Impact on child protection policy and practice? BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR

19. Contact Details Carlene Firmin MBE +44 (0)207 250 3933 carlene@msunderstood.org.uk www.msunderstood.org.uk/challenge BASW OCt 2013 Presentation - NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITH CONSENT OF AUTHOR