Extra-familial exploitation of adolescents: Recognizing and responding to risk factors

Exploitation of adolescents is highly profitable for criminals, made all the more complex by social media.

In a seminar at the Shared Futures in Social Work conference (part of the COMPASS Jobs Fair) in London last week, Lianne Conway, Exploitation and Vulnerabilities Co-ordinator for Hounslow Borough Council said ‘it’s called organised crime for a reason.’ The criminals operate in ways that are familiar to any legitimate business – there are strategies for recruitment, marketing and operations.

She said that the Home Office says that Child Criminal Exploitation is child abuse and occurs where an individual or a group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, control, manipulate or deceive a child under the age of 18 into any criminal activity
- in exchange for something the victim needs or wants, and/or
- for the financial or other advantage of the perpetrator or facilitator and/or (
- thorugh violence of the threat of violence.

Similarly, Child Sexual Exploitation is when an individual or group takes advantage of a power imbalance to coerce, manipulate or deceive a person under the age of 18 into sexual activity, in exchange for something the young person needs or wants, or for the financial advantage or increased status of the perpetrator.

‘It is not always in person – it can be online or through the use of technology.’

Ms Conway emphasised that both are forms of exploitation, regardless of whether the victim appears to consent.

‘It is myth that young people who deal in drugs are making a lifestyle choice. The real test of whether it is a choice is whether the young person can walk away from it safely.’

Phil Hopkins, Head of Adolescent Services in the borough, added, ‘What we have seen is, for example, debt bondage – a young person ended up in custody and the criminals transferred his debt to them to his friend. In another instance, a child was in debt and the gang turned up at the house of his grandmother. The child himself was not on social services’ radar – he was pulled in through social media.’

Ms Conway said that online exploitation can be especially complex for professionals. Criminals use fake profiles to groom young people and build relationships. In child sexual exploitation, criminals coerce them into sending nude pictures, using the images to manipulate and threaten them, and force them into further exploitation.

Criminal exploitation often means selling drugs; a child with two phones may be involved in sharing locations, advertising sales of drugs, or coordinating and tracking locations and contacts.

Language, emojis and acronyms which appear innocent to adults are part of the language of criminal activity.

Ms Conway said that there is a wide range of indicators that a person is being exploited.
These include:
• Going missing from home, staying out late and travelling for unexplained reasons.
• Poor or non-attendance at school.
• In a relationship or hanging out with someone older than them.
• Being angry, aggressive or violent.
• Being isolated or withdrawn.
• Having unexplained money and buying new things.
• Wearing clothes or accessories in gang colours or getting tattoos.
• Using new slang words.
• Spending more time on social media or being secretive about time online.
• Having more than one phone.

For social work to be effective, the practitioner needs to develop a collaborative, strengths-based approach with the young person.

Ms Conway said, ‘There is no ‘quick fix’. Building relationships and trust will take time and if we think about the list of things the young person may be trying to manage, they are going to want to be sure you are a trusted adult before opening up to you.

‘You will need to be reliable, consistent, on time, present. If you have to change plans let them know.

‘What we want or think a young person needs, may not be what they want to achieve. If we are not having these discussions, we won't know.

‘The professional goal may be for a young person to leave all criminal activity behind, attend school full time, stay in lessons, not get into ‘trouble’ with teachers, not go missing.
The young person’s goal may be to start building a network of people they can trust to help them and have a safe space to talk when needed.’