Warning signs for the Youth Justice Service

Justice Services have an important role in spotting the early signs of child criminal exploitation, which can be difficult to recognise.

Some young people are groomed into thinking that their exploiters are their friends and care about them. Youth justice practitioners must be alert to child criminal exploitation and the different ways in which it manifests.

This includes grooming and criminal exploitation within the secure youth estate, as well as the wider community, and the use of young people to target and groom their peers in return for drugs or to prevent violence to themselves or their families.

Young people may not know or perceive their actions to be wrong or against the law. Exploiters may conceal or minimise the nature of criminal activities.

They may be told:

• they are dropping off something for a ‘friend’ or that they ‘owe’ the exploiter and must do a favour for them
• they are helping drug addicts by giving them ‘food’ or they are committing a victimless crime when committing fraud or money-flipping
• they will receive punitive child protection and safeguarding responses if they claim they are being exploited
• they will be arrested or taken into local authority care.

Youth justice practitioners must have clear service pathways for first offenders and young people who are coming to their attention for the first time.

When child criminal exploitation is suspected, youth justice practitioners should refer the young person to children’s services using a Multi-Agency Referral Form (MARF).