A new campaign to spotlight the issue - entitled WiSE Up To Exploitation - has been devised and launched by YMCA DownsLink Group. As well as highlighting the issue, the campaign aims to help people learn how to spot the signs that someone maybe being exploited – and to report concerns to Brighton & Hove Council's Front Door For Families team.
A group of Brighton student volunteers have volunteered as part of the YMCA project, with their latest contribution being a new short animated film. The production was guided by marketing student Rupert Sampson, currently in his first year studying Marketing Management BSc(Hons) at the Brighton Business School.
Rupert said: "Child Criminal Exploitation is a highly sensitive topic, so conveying a clear message can be difficult, especially when you are trying to reach a diverse audience. We felt animation was the best way to present the key issues in a format that was easily understood and within budget.
“One of the key messages we wanted to relay was this is not a 'do not take drugs' campaign. It is about encouraging people to make reports to Front Door For Families should they come across a young person who may be involved in dealing drugs.
“As a group, we are aiming for students, along with the broader community, to understand that Child Criminal Exploitation is a real issue in Brighton and Hove. And that together, through making reports, we can help not only the young victims that have fallen into this trap, but also prevent more from joining them.”
Magdalene Mill, WiSE Participation and Engagement Worker at YMCA Downs Link Group, said:
“Child criminal exploitation is a type of abuse where children are targeted - often through social media platforms such as Snap Chat and Instagram - then groomed and coerced into committing criminal acts. On the surface it may appear that children have made a freely given choice - however, tactics including intimidation, violence, sexual violence, debt bondage and weapons can be used to manipulate them to commit crimes.”
Hove and Portslade MP Peter Kyle, who is also Shadow Minister for Victims and Youth Justice, has backed the campaign. He said: “Consuming illicit drugs isn’t a pain-free choice. When someone orders their fix, they set off a chain of processes with exploitation at its heart. Young people from all across the country are coerced to travel long distances, putting themselves in mortal danger and held in modern slavery to exploitative drug gangs. These gangs hold vulnerable young people in debt bondage, often threatening to injure or kill loved ones unless the victims do as they say. Brighton and Hove is a top target for county lines dealers across the UK - now it’s time to fight back.”
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Twitter: @TheWiSEProject