Scathing report finds ‘extensive failures’ in way child exploitation is tackled

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “There appeared to be a flawed assumption that child sexual exploitation was on the wane, however it has become even more of a hidden problem and increasingly underestimated.” The report, the 18th from the IICSA since it was established, featured harrowing testimony from more than 30 young witnesses across six case study areas – Bristol Durham, St Helens Swansea, Tower Hamlets and Warwickshire. It said there was evidence of child sexual exploitation by networks in all six areas, but that the relevant police forces were “generally not able to provide any evidence about these networks”. He told the PA news agency: “This lack of recording data properly means at the fundamental level none of the authorities … could look you in the eye and say: ‘We understand the scale and nature of abuse in our area, and we are putting in place the right mechanisms to both prosecute those who are responsible and give the right support to those who are victims’.” The report concluded: “It was clear from the evidence that none of the police forces or local authorities in the case study areas in this investigation had an accurate understanding of networks sexually exploiting children in their area.” The focus should be on investigating the criminal conduct of sexual exploitation, not sanctioning children for what is frequently low-level antisocial behaviour Professor Alexis Jay There were also examples of victim-blaming, the report found, with children being described as “promiscuous” and “putting themselves at risk” in referrals to a support charity in St Helens. “The focus should be on investigating the criminal conduct of sexual exploitation, not sanctioning children for what is frequently low-level antisocial behaviour.” The report said senior leaders within local authorities and police forces must take the lead on “eradicating attitudes and behaviours which suggest that children who are victims of exploitation are in some way responsible for it”.