A specialist team is currently monitoring 24 children in the Cumberland Council area at risk of abuse or exploitation, it has been revealed.
Members of the council’s people overview and scrutiny committee met in Allerdale House, Workington, on Friday to consider a report on child exploitation.
According to the report, the Complex Safeguarding Team is currently working with the 24 children and young people – of which 16 were male and eight female, aged between 13 to 17.
The figures show that three are considered being at high risk, 11 at medium risk and the remaining 10 being at low risk.
Lynn Berryman, the council’s assistant director for children and families, told members they were dealing an increased number of children and in the past social workers dealt with abuse that was within the family group but that had changed.
She said: “It is outside the family home from other people that aren’t part of the family of that child.”
The team was set up by the council in April this year and consists of a team manager, a senior support worker and four support workers.
Ms Berryman said the victims could be at risk of child sexual exploitation, child criminal exploitation or modern slavery and trafficking.
Councillor Helen Tucker (Cockermouth North, Labour), who is a teacher, said the perpetrators were not necessarily adults and added: “It is also child on child.
“This is something we are seeing much more – it’s rearing its ugly little head even in primary schools.”
Committee chairman councillor Chris Wills (Upperby, Lib Dems) said it could be one child coercing another child and the perpetrator could be part of an organised group.
Ms Berryman said: “The perpetrator could also be a victim themselves. It’s a complex area.”
She said child criminal exploitation involved an imbalance of power and a typical example could be a county lines drugs operation.
She said the victim might receive something that they wanted or needed, or they may be coerced through the threat of violence, and the targets were typically vulnerable children.
When she said currently the focus was on those children at medium or high risk, Cllr Wills asked if this was due to a lack of resources? He added: “If you were better resourced could you cast the net wider?”
Ms Berryman said that more resources would always make a difference.
She said with the low-risk children there were some indicators, those at medium risk the indicators were apparent and with those at high risk there was clear evidence.
Councillor Emma Williamson (Kells and Sandwith, Labour), the portfolio holder for children’s, family wellbeing and housing, said being classed as being at low risk did not mean there was no intervention.
Cllr Wills said the work of the staff was important and they needed to talk to central government for more funding.
The report said that boys were twice as likely to be exploited than girls. It added: “However, this could also be as a result of under reporting and identification of female victims.
“An exploitation profile and data dashboard has been developed which, when testing is complete, provide a detailed profile of exploitation across Cumberland.
“This will monitor trends and patterns informing both strategic and tactical responses across the wider professional network and partnerships.”
The committee noted the contents of the report and it was agreed that the subject should be reviewed every six months.
