Cafcass study highlights CSE learning from case reviews
Neil Puffett
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Victims of child sexual exploitation (CSE) may be so influenced by abusers that they are unable to provide full or accurate accounts of their experiences to safeguarding professionals, analysis has concluded.
A review by the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) of its contributions to 28 serious case reviews (SCRs) between August 2013 and September 2014 highlights the difficulties faced by professionals in identifying and helping CSE victims.
It found that children with pre-existing vulnerabilities as a result of issues such as violence within the family, or substance abuse, can be targets of CSE because they are less likely to disclose information or be protected by adults.
The Cafcass report also reveals that victims may believe they are entering into consensual relationships – describing their abusers as "boyfriends".
“This can lead to cases of exploitation being overlooked as authorities may misunderstand the coercive elements of these relationships,” the report states.
The report makes a total of five learning points relating to CSE cases for professionals:
- The victim may not have provided a full and accurate account of the CSE due to “systematic” grooming
- The CSE may not have ended and the child may not be safe
- The victim may not have entered freely into an equal relationship with her apparent "boyfriend"
- Descriptions of the victim’s behaviour such as "sexually active" or "involved in prostitution" are likely to mask the CSE
- Not all victims are necessarily girls
Anthony Douglas, chief executive of Cafcass, said the research highlights the difficulty social workers face in identifying exploitation amid a number of "obscuring factors".
"Hopefully this study will be built upon and allow us to recognise some of the recurring warning signs – ultimately enabling us to protect more vulnerable children from such an abhorrent crime,” he said.
Besides CSE, the research also looked at other learning that can be taken from SCRs that Cafcass contributed to.
It found that domestic violence was the most common risk factor identified in cases following divorce or separation, while physical abuse was the most commonly identified risk factor in care cases.
The report also notes that the average age of the mothers of the children who were the subject to SCRs at the birth of their first child was five years lower than the national average.
