Criminal Exploitation of Children and County Lines

The Home Office defines Criminal Exploitation of Children or 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.

Criminal Exploitation of Children 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.

The Home Office guidance on criminal exploitation of children focused almost exclusively on county lines in its 2018 edition. This was updated in October 2023 to include a far fuller and more nuanced picture of the ways in which children may be exploited. This now includes carrying weapons. forced cannabis cultivation. forced home invasion, forced begging, busking, shoplifting or pickpocketing as well as financial exploitation.

Criminal exploitation is currently located in legal terms under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 in England and Wales, and its trafficking counterparts in Scotland100 and Northern Ireland.

Trafficking is:

‘A person commits an offence if they intentionally arrange or facilitate the travel of another person with the intent to commit a relevant offence.’

• Moving a person from point A to point B to arrange or facilitate a relevant crime;
• They do not need to have moved far – it could be a couple of miles;
• They do not need to have been trafficked in or out of a country;
• They may not realise that they have experienced trafficking.

Understanding Consent in Trafficking

The apparent consent of a victim to be controlled and exploited is irrelevant when one or more of the following is used to get that consent:

• The threat or use of force;
• Abduction;
• Fraud;
• Deception;
• Abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability;
• Giving or receiving of payments or benefits.

Any child recruited, transported, or transferred for the purposes of exploitation is considered a potential victim of trafficking, whether or not they are forced or deceived. This is because it is not considered possible for children to give informed consent.

County lines is a form of Criminal Exploitation of Children. County lines is a drugs distribution model, described by the UK government as the most violent and exploitative distribution model yet seen in the drugs market.  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, as well as conceal (often within their bodies) drugs, cash, weapons, sim cards, phones) 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 children to transport and sell 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 their home or care placement 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 and exploited 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.

Criminal exploitation can affect anyone. 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:

• Can affect any child or young person (male or female) under the age of 18 years;
• Can still be exploitation even if the activity appears consensual;
• Can involve force and/or enticement-based methods of compliance (i.e. the receipt by the child of money / drugs or other goods) and is often accompanied by violence or threats of violence;
• Can be perpetrated by individuals or groups, males or females, and young people or adults; and
• Is typified by some form of power imbalance in favour of those perpetrating the exploitation. Whilst age may be the most obvious, this power imbalance can also be due to a range of other factors including gender, cognitive ability, physical strength, status, and access to economic or other resources.

Perpetrators are known to target vulnerable situations for children and adults; some of the factors that heighten vulnerability include:

• Having prior experience of neglect, physical and/or sexual abuse;
• Being in the social care environment (particularly those living in Children's Homes and those with interrupted care histories);
• Social isolation or social difficulties;
• Connections with other people exploited by gangs;
• Having a physical disability or learning disability;
• Having mental health or substance misuse dependencies;
• Being excluded from education, in particular attending a Pupil Referral Unit. It is important when schools are considering exclusions they also consider the safeguarding risks to the child.

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.

Understand that children and young people can express themselves in many different ways and the ‘voice’ of children and young people can include both what is said and unsaid, as well as verbal and non-verbal indicators. 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:

• Persistently going missing from their school or the home and / or being found out-of-area;
• Noticeable changes in behaviour (these changes can be very rapid);
• Unexplained acquisition of money, clothes, or mobile phones;
• Excessive receipt of texts / phone calls and/or having multiple handsets;
• Relationships with controlling / older individuals or groups;
• Leaving the home without explanation;
• Suspicion of physical assault / unexplained injuries;
• Carrying weapons / drugs;
• Significant decline in school results / performance;
• Gang association or isolation from peers or social networks;
• Self-harm or significant changes in emotional well-being.

Self-harm or significant changes in emotional well-being. Just as there is no one type of child who becomes exploited, there is no single path through which children fall victim to exploitation. However, once grooming has begun it follows a typical pattern. The process of exploitation unfolds through a series of incremental steps, marked by a mix of incentives, coercion, and threats. The Children’s Society explains the cycle of exploitation through stages of 'target', 'test', 'trap', which provides a useful approach to understand children’s experiences.

See also: Safeguarding Children Partnership Procedures, Child Criminal Exploitation Procedure.

When concerns about criminal exploitation have been identified, the child's Plans 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. All children and young people have the right to have a say about matters that affect them and be heard in decisions made about them. Listening to, hearing, and responding to what children and young people are communicating (remembering that communication does not have to be verbal) helps to build trusting relationships and helps professionals to better engage children and young people. This in turn can increase their safety; participation is a core part of protection. A child-centred approach such as the child’s version of the safety plan provides opportunities for children to exercise control and choice, which is both a practical and powerful way to infer the coercion and manipulation associated with exploitation of children and some other forms of harm. Ensure that the safety plans demonstrate a contextual understanding of all the spheres of children’s lives - including education settings, peer groups, community spaces and online interactions as spaces and places they spend their time, the potential for harm that can exist there and the actions that can be taken to mediate and address these.

Supporting Children and Young People

Being strengths-based and relationship-based means seeing a child or young person holistically and identifying their strengths and assets and the positive factors in their lives, rather than just seeing them as at risk, being harmed or causing harm to others. It also means understanding and using the positive power of relationships, as a way to support growth and change.

• Building positive relationships with children is vital to preventing and identifying exploitation;
• See the whole of the child or young person; acknowledge that children and young people are more than the harm they face, or cause towards others;
• Understand the reasons behind children and young people’s behaviours and make the time to explore what they are thinking and feeling, particularly when a child or young person has done something that is considered ‘bad’ or hurtful;
• Adults should be supportive and ready to listen to children when and if they need to talk;
• Look beyond presenting behaviours; if children are upset, secretive or going missing ask yourself what might be going on in their lives?
• Ask children and young people how they want to be involved and give them choices about how to engage. Children and young people want to influence decisions and have their say about what support they need;
• When children who are known to be at risk of exploitation go missing, this should be reported promptly to the police, the child's social worker and the local Children's Social Care so they can take action to locate them and return them to safety;
• Whenever children who have been missing return to the home they should be made welcome and offered care and support. Independent Return interviews should be offered in line with the Missing Children Procedure;
• Building strong links with education providers will help to ensure that the home is) notified promptly if a child does not arrive at their education establishment as planned, and protective action taken as a result;
• Tell them who their information will be shared with, and why. Provide feedback on how their views have been taken into account and, where decisions cannot align with their wishes (for safety reasons), have meaningful conversations around this.

If any adults 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 you have concerns that a child is in immediate danger, 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 Information

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 adults, 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.

The National Referral Mechanism - What is the National Referral Mechanism?

The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is a framework for identifying victims of human trafficking and ensuring they receive the appropriate protection and support. The NRM is also the mechanism through which the National Crime Agency (NCA) collects data about victims. This information aims to help build a clearer picture about the scope of human trafficking in the UK.

Why Refer a Child into the NRM?

Referring children into the NRM encourages the sharing of information between agencies and can help to ensure an appropriate safeguarding response. It also helps the UK to collect evidence and build an understanding of the patterns of child trafficking. This helps to shape policy and can aid police investigations into trafficking.

Modern slavery, including child trafficking, is child abuse. When an agency comes into contact with a child who may have been exploited or trafficked, Local Authority Children’s Services and the police should be notified immediately. A referral into the NRM does not replace or supersede established child protection processes, which should continue in tandem. All children, irrespective of their immigration status, are entitled to safeguarding and protection under the law. Referrals to the NRM should be for all potential victims of trafficking and modern slavery, who can be of any nationality, and may include British national children, such as those trafficked for child sexual exploitation or those trafficked as drug carriers internally in the UK. Where there is reason to believe a victim could be a child, the individual must be given the benefit of the doubt and treated as a child until an assessment is carried out.

If the potential victim is under 18, or may be under 18, an NRM referral must be made – children cannot be referred in using a DtN referral. Child victims do not have to consent to be referred into the NRM and must first be safeguarded and then referred into the NRM process.

A ‘first responder organisation’ is, in England and Wales, an authority that is authorised to refer a potential victim of modern slavery into the National Referral Mechanism. The current statutory and non-statutory first responder organisations are:

• Police forces;
• Certain parts of the Home Office;
• UK Visas and Immigration;
• Border Force;
• Immigration Enforcement;
• National Crime Agency;
• Local Authorities;
• Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA);
• Salvation Army;
• Migrant Help;
• Medaille Trust;
• Kalayaan;
• Barnardo’s;
• Unseen;
• NSPCC (CTAC);
• BAWSO;
• New Pathways;
• Refugee Council;
• Report as a member of the public.

You can still report modern slavery as a member of the public. Call the modern slavery helpline on 0800 0121 700 or report it online.

Children's needs and safety must always come first. This means that adults working in the home should respond flexibly and continue to 'stay with the child', even when due to the trauma they have experienced because of their exploitation, the child finds it difficult to trust adults. Prioritise the safety and wellbeing of children and young people. Consider their diverse communication, social and development needs, including the impact of trauma and adverse childhood experiences on neurological and social development, and ensure the support offered is accessible. Relationships between children and their carers which are based on consistency, stability and respectful communication will help in supporting effective interventions with exploited children.

We need to see and consider a child holistically – their identity, trauma, physical and mental health and their experiences of inequalities. When a child presents with offending, or other concerning behaviour, adults 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. Enabling children and young people to exercise voice, choice and control - all of which are undermined by trauma - is important, as is a recognition that ‘non-engagement’ or ‘negative’ coping strategies may be a direct or indirect result of trauma.

Adults 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.

Adults should have the opportunity to learn about issues such as:

• The diverse communication, social and development needs of children and young people;
• The nature of constrained choice, including survival choices, that children and young people face;
• How discrimination and negative stereotypes can lead to false assumptions around blame and responsibility;
• Support adults to advocate for children and young people, including where they need more specialist support from across the partnership;
• Support adults to recognise and hold the tension where children and young people are both victims and harming others; manage a response that addresses both;
• Recognise that everyone has biases, makes assumptions, and can be influenced by stereotypes, including in ways they may be unaware of. Use the support of peers and managers to reflect on your own identity and experiences, and how these shape your perspective and practice;
• Proactively use supervision, line management support and organisational wellbeing support to help manage the potential for vicarious / secondary trauma;
• Critical thinking, evidence synthesis and analysis are crucially important in considering multiple sources of information and intelligence in order to:
  • Build an accurate picture of how exploitation of children and extra-familial harm is;
  • Manifesting in a local area;
  • Understand what is happening in a child or young person’s life;
  • Keep up to date with evolving knowledge and research.
• In direct practice and in management and strategic partnership activity, curiosity is needed to actively challenge assumptions and consider what is not known, alongside what is known.

Protecting children from criminal exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery (GOV.UK) - thematic report from Joint Inspections on the risk of child criminal exploitation.

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.

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.

Report Modern Slavery

Good Practice Guidance

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.

The Jay Review of Criminally Exploited Children - Action For Children