Improving The Hope of Young People Impacted by Serious Violence and Child Criminal Exploitation: Summary Report

In Spring 2023, The Children’s Society’s Newcastle team commissioned Northumbria University to conduct an evaluation of their SCARPA (Safeguarding Children at Risk – Prevention and Action) service. The Children’s Society’s SCARPA service works across the whole of the North East region, supporting children and young people aged 10-18 who go missing and/or are at risk of or are victims of exploitation. This includes both child sexual exploitation (CSE) and child criminal exploitation (CCE). Children and young people who experience exploitation are at high risk of harm, including becoming victims and/or perpetrators of serious youth violence (SYV). They may also be at risk of human trafficking. Consequently, exploited young people should also be considered alongside modern slavery in line with the Modern Slavery Act 2015. Recognising this, SCARPA provides targeted, non-time limited, one-to-one support to young people to identify their underlying needs, the risks that they face due to exploitation, promote their welfare and wellbeing, and support them to feel safer. Drawing upon SCARPA service data and semi-structured interviews with frontline stakeholders and young victims of CCE, the primary purpose of this evaluation was to understand the effectiveness of the SCARPA service’s current practice in supporting young people affected by SYV and CCE.