From Excluded to Included: Parents as Partners in Child Exploitation
Dr Sarah Hall and Dr Nicholas Marsh
Overview
This report explores the experiences of parents and carers whose children have been criminally or sexually exploited. From Excluded to Included draws on new evidence from parent interviews to understand whether the safeguarding systems in place are equipped to support, and are responsive to the needs of families living with child exploitation.
A seismic event: The Impact on Families
The researchers describe the shattering impact child exploitation has on children and their families:
“Exploitation can feel like a seismic event: sudden, destabalising and deeply damaging. It often arrives with little warning, shaking the very foundations of family life. Like the epicentre of an earthquake, the initial impact is felt most acutely by those closest but the aftershocks ripple outwards, affecting relationships, wellbeing, and the family’s sense of safety and identity for months or even years to come.”
Families reported living in constant fear, bracing for the next crisis, and navigating a system that too often failed to recognise the scale of the harm.
Key Findings
Parents often feel excluded from safeguarding processes
Parents frequently identify early warning signs of exploitation but report their concerns are often dismissed by safeguarding professionals. High staff turnover among social workers and inconsistent responses across services undermine parental trust in safeguarding systems.
Initially, I saw the signs before the local authority did….and they told me there is no CSE in my area.” Parent
Exploitation causes harm to entire families
The report challenges traditional safeguarding assumptions. Exploitation outside the home often leads to violence, threats, coercion and significant trauma within the family home. Parents described:
- Intimidation from exploiters
- Property damage, fear and threats
- Child on parent violence as a result of trauma
- Emotional and psychological distress affecting the whole family
Intersectional barriers limit effective support
Race, gender and socio-economic biases influence safeguarding responses. Parents from minority ethnic and working class backgrounds frequently report disproportionate scrutiny and exclusion from decision-making. In particular, parents of Black boys and young men highlight experiences where their children are perceived as perpetrators rather than victims, suggesting the presence of adultification bias.
Individual practitioners play a vital role
Parents particularly valued professionals and organisations that offered advocacy, consistent support, and practical assistance, viewing these as beneficial forms of help.
Headline Recommendations
The report sets out seven key changes needed to improve responses to child exploitation and outcomes for affected families.
- Embed parent advocates within safeguarding teams
- Treat parents as true partners
- Recognise and plan for harm inside the home caused by the external exploitation
- Enhance multi-agency collaboration
- Recognise child exploitation as a core safeguarding priority
- Strengthen statutory and voluntary sector partnerships
- Prioritise anti-oppressive practice
The report calls for urgent reforms to improve outcomes for children and their families.
“The impact of child exploitation is unquestionably life-altering, but it also reveals the extraordinary resilience of families navigating the most complex and painful of circumstances. The residence deserves not just to be witness, but supported, honoured and actively centred in our safeguarding systems.”