Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and Deputy Mayors for Policing and Crime – who we also represent as they hold PCC functions in combined authority areas – are elected to scrutinise police forces in England and Wales on behalf the public to ensure they deliver against a set of local priorities based on local need. PCCs also commission victim services for their police force area.

Please see statement below from the APCC’s Joint Leads on Prevention and Children and Young People, Clare Moody (PCC for Avon and Somerset) and Jonathan Ash-Edwards (PCC for Hertfordshire):

“The need to tackle the exploitation of children is urgent. Tens of thousands of young lives are being gravely damaged by dangerous criminal and sexual abuse. We cannot turn a blind eye to children being manipulated or pressured into criminal activity under threat of violence or sexual assault, often as part of organised criminal enterprises that distribute drugs, money or weapons.

This kind of abuse is complex, turning young people into both criminal offender and victim, each with possible severe long-term consequences. It is not something policing alone can address but requires an approach based on shared responsibility and early intervention.

We know Black and minority ethnic children and those excluded from school are at greater risk of being exploited so it is vital partners in education, health, policing and the voluntary sector act jointly to identify and protect those in danger of being groomed and abused before it happens.

Police and Crime Commissioners and Deputy Mayors are key to convening and driving partnerships locally and providing services that support victims who may not even realise they are being exploited. We are committed to ensuring our police forces properly prioritise child exploitation.

By raising awareness and working together, sharing expertise and knowledge, we can better safeguard vulnerable young people from being drawn into hazardous lifestyles controlled by criminals.”