What is child sexual exploitation?
Child sexual exploitation is a form of child abuse that can manifest itself in a number of ways. According to the Department for Education (DfE), child sexual exploitation "involves children and young people receiving something – for example, accommodation, drugs, gifts or affection – as a result of them performing sexual activities or having others perform sexual activities on them". It does not necessarily involve physical contact. In some cases it may involve children being groomed through the internet to post explicit images online.
A key feature of exploitative relationships is the power a perpetrator holds over his or her victim, exerted through fear, coercion and violence, which makes the child even more vulnerable to abuse. As a result, victims of such exploitation often do not recognise that what they are experiencing constitutes abuse.
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