Criminal exploitation: practitioner guidance

6. Whom does Criminal Exploitation affect?

30. Children, young people and adults from any background can be criminally exploited. Communities can also be targeted and be vulnerable to the harms of organised crime.

31. Particular social groups might be targeted to avoid detection, e.g. some perpetrators might target older, neglected children who they consider less likely to be reported missing, children not in education or excluded, care experienced young adults, individuals who are homeless, individuals with learning disabilities or those with mental health and/or substance use issues, individuals with their own tenancy that are isolated and can be easily cuckooed. However, the grooming of affluent children attending private schools, or of professionals has also been reported. Criminal gangs may consider these groups as less likely to be identified as engaging in criminal activity or have specific skills or contacts they can utilise. Within national forums, agencies have also reported increasing identification of involvement of girls and young women, perpetrators may believe these groups are less likely to be identified as being involved in criminality. All forms of exploitation including financial and sexual should be considered if there is indication of exploitation taking place. It should not be assumed that one form of exploitation occurs in isolation.

32. For communities, organised crime groups are more likely to target areas of social and economic deprivation where they can exploit levels of poverty, marginalised and isolated individuals, cultivating environments that benefit their functioning. Research commissioned by the Scottish Government Community Experiences of Serious Organised Crime (2018) highlights the critical role of supporting communities to become more resilient to the harms of serious organised crime.

33. To better understand how an individual or community may be affected, contextual safeguarding can be a useful approach to consider. This is an approach which has been used predominately with children and not yet explored for adults. Contextual Safeguarding is an approach which seeks to identify and respond to harm and abuse that individuals experience outwith their family environment. A traditional focus on the child and their family, which does not consider the relevance of wider relationships and the location of harm, may not be sufficient in managing presenting behaviours or reducing contextual risks. This harm can be experienced in communities, social clubs, schools, between peers and in online forums. Identifying an individual’s personal strengths should also be considered within this approach as a way of promoting resilience to exploitation. All professionals working within a child protection context should follow the GIRFEC framework and their local child protection procedures (Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)). Contextual Safeguarding should be seen as a complementary support to existing procedures.