Aug 22, 2023 | News, Press Releases
By Tracy Harrison, CEO of Safe and Sound – Derbyshire’s leading charity that supports and protects children, young people and families whose lives have been affected by child exploitation.
Latest research reveals that more than 2,600 online grooming crimes have been recorded by police in the East Midlands in the six years since sexual communication with a child was officially recognised as a criminal offence.
That means that literally hundreds of children and young people have been contacted by perpetrators online; blackmailed into sharing indecent photographs of themselves; have been sent horrific images and pornography and, in some cases, have been coerced into meeting up with the perpetrators and subjected to life-changing emotional, physical and sexual abuse.
These figures are likely to be only the tip of the iceberg with many more young people too afraid or ashamed to ask for help – petrified that their abuser will mete out the retribution they have threatened or fearful that they will not be believed and somehow be blamed for what has happened.
Most people think that online grooming takes place on traditional social media channels but researchers have identified 150 different apps, games and websites being used to target children.
Between April 2022 and March 2023, Safe and Sound supported 346 children and young people and, in the vast majority of cases, the grooming and abuse started online.
Online grooming has therefore had a devastating effect on the lives of too many young people and their wider families and we need to do all we can to protect them.
Organisations such as ourselves who are committed to protecting and supporting children and young people who are at risk or are victims of child exploitation have long been calling for the swift passage of the Online Safety Bill which has slowed since the draft was first published more than two years ago.
The legislation will mean that tech companies have a legal duty of care for young users and put safeguards in place to protect children online with stronger regulation by Ofcom.
We hope that the Online Safety Bill will become law this Autumn but, in the meantime, I appeal to families to be far more vigilant about the dangers online for young people.
Please set the highest possible privacy settings on their social media, gaming and search engine apps and channels.
Most of us would question a young person as they leave the home about where they are going and who they are meeting. It’s the same for online activity. Have open and honest discussions about who they are talking to online and that not everybody is who they seem.
For more advice and information, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Aug 21, 2023 | Events, Fundraising, News, Press Releases
Specialist child exploitation charity Safe and Sound has been appointed to deliver a special programme that aims to strengthen family relationships and reduce the number of young people going into local authority care in Derby city.
The charity has worked closely with Derby City Council to deliver a pilot Family Group Conference programme in the city which is the first in the Midlands and were part of a competitive tendering process to determine its future delivery.
The programme was originally devised by Leeds City Council and centres around empowering and supporting families to find solutions to the issues they face and remain together as a family unit rather than matters escalating and their children being placed in care.
Over the two-year pilot, 115 families have been referred to Safe and Sound by Derby City Council with 95 conference reviews held – bringing the wider family around the table to discuss the future of the children.
Issues have ranged from single parents who have been empowered to ask their families for practical and emotional support to children being cared for by other family members rather than being placed in care due to issues at home.
Safe and Sound has drawn on its experience in supporting children and young people who are victims of or at risk of exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines, trafficking, modern slavery and radicalisation as well as helping the wider family.
Safe and Sound chief executive Tracy Harrison explained: “We were originally appointed to lead on this pilot programme because of our proven track record in protecting and supporting children, young people and families – empowering them to take back control and re-build their lives.
“Children in care are more vulnerable to exploitation and if we can keep them safer in the family home it reduces that risk too.
“We also have widespread experience of supporting young people and families who are new arrivals to the city such as those in the Roma community who have a long-held mistrust of authority and whose children are particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
“Throughout the pilot programme we have demonstrated how we can successfully empower and support the family to broker relationships, work through issues together and make safe decisions and plans so that children going into the care of the local authority is the last resort.
“We have worked with families facing a wide range of issues to move forward positively and have also been able to put extra support in place where we can or signpost them to other organisations for help.
“I am delighted that foundations we have helped put in place will now be built upon moving forward so that we play an important role in empowering families to find a solution that enables more young people to grow into adulthood safely and with family support.”
Cllr John Whitby, Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care, Learning and Skills at Derby City Council, added: “The Family Group Conferencing approach reflects the aims and values of both Derby City Council and Safe and Sound where children are at the centre of practice.
“We have a shared desire to empower and enable families to find solutions, make changes, build resilience and, most of all, to remain together.
“The work undertaken initially in Leeds and now in Derby has shown that, through building relationships with professionals who support and guide through this process, families can and do achieve this.”
Among the families supported through the pilot Family Group Conferencing programme is a couple with seven children. On discovering that she had a terminal illness, the mother knew her partner could not cope. By bringing the four grown up children around the table, plans were progressed for the younger ones to be looked after rather than going into care.
Another mother with a young son was facing an ongoing alcohol misuse issues. Through the Family Group Conference she was empowered to admit the extent of her challenges and to ask for help and support from her wider family which has ensured the safety and care of her son.
For more information about Safe and Sound and how to support the work it does, please visit https://safeandsoundgroup.org.uk/
Jul 27, 2023 | Events, Fundraising, News, Press Releases
One of Derby’s most popular charity events is returning to Markeaton Park after an extended break.
The Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity Colour Run is set to return to the park after three years with the local charities and businesses getting on board to support the colour-filled event.
The event, which will see runners follow a 5km route around Markeaton Park whilst being sprayed in a rainbow of coloured powder paint, takes place on Saturday 16 August from 11am – 2pm.
Safe and Sound, Derbyshire’s specialist charity that supports children, young people and families affected by child exploitation, is working alongside the Hospitals Charity to raise funds and awareness.
Vicky Carey, Community Fundraiser at Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity, said: “We are thrilled to be working with another local charity and make our event bigger and better than ever.
“It is really important to us to have support from our local community, whose generosity enables us to carry on providing those much-needed extras, and the money raised will make a real difference to patients across the Trust.”
Tracy Harrison, CEO of Safe and Sound added: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to be part of this great event which will raise much needed funds and awareness both for us and the hospitals charity.
“Child exploitation is not a comfortable subject to discuss but I hope that our involvement in the Colour Run will encourage more conversations about the dangers facing young people both online and in our local communities so that families reach out for support and advice if they have concerns.
“We are particularly keen to give some of the young people that we support the opportunity take part in the Colour Run to build their confidence, resilience and self-esteem and hope that business sponsorship will be able to make this happen.”
Runners in the event will be raising money for Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity but can also choose to support a specific ward or department across any of University Hospitals of Derby and Burton’s (UHDB) five hospital sites in Derby, Burton, Tamworth and Lichfield.
Adults and children over five are all welcome to take part in the fun run. Entry costs £25 for over-16s or £12.50 for under-16s and includes a free t-shirt and paint packet to use at the start of the race.
Sign up for the 2023 Colour Run on our website > or alternatively, you can call Vicky Carey on 01332 788 861.
For further information on the Safe and Sound charity, and how to discuss young people sponsorship opportunities, visit their website >
Jul 20, 2023 | News, News, Press Releases
Derbyshire specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has been appointed to extend outreach work in parts of South Derbyshire following a successful pilot programme.
The pilot outreach programme originally started in Swadlincote and was stepped up following a tragic stabbing in a local park which rocked the whole community. The geographical area has since been expanded to other areas in the district eg: Newhall in parks and places where young people tend to congregate.
Outreach workers and volunteers from Safe and Sound will continue to be joined by representatives from other agencies including Derbyshire County Council’s early help youth practitioners, sexual health specialists and Derbyshire police neighbourhood teams.
Key objectives of the outreach programme, funded by Derbyshire County Council, are to raise awareness of young people around grooming and exploitation, provide reassurance around community safety and gain the views of young people about services and support they needed to feel safer.
During the pilot programme, young people have highlighted specific places where they feel unsafe, have been signposted to positive youth activities they can join and have been empowered to be advocates amongst their own peers for community safety.
Safe and Sound CEO Tracy Harrison explained: “Our team of outreach workers and volunteers, alongside representatives from partner agencies, have done a brilliant job in building relationships with young people across the district by providing a regular, reliable and approach presence in local communities.
“Our team is responsive and reacts to intelligence that is shared from partnership agencies – adapting routes according to the needs of the community – just as we also do on a weekly basis in Derby city centre.
“As well as raising awareness and feeding back issues that they are concerned about, we have received self-referrals from young people who need our help including one young person who we were able to help secure bereavement counselling that they desperately needed.”
Samantha Elks, Health Improvement Practitioner in Derbyshire Dales & South Derbyshire, continued: “The South Derbyshire Partnership are pleased to support Safe and Sound to deliver outreach youth work in the Swadlincote urban core.
“Outreach youth work is a valuable part of the support offer that is available to children and young people to aid their emotional wellbeing and to protect more young people from child exploitation.”
Chris Smith, Communities Team Manager at South Derbyshire District Council concluded: “This offer compliments the existing groups and activities available and enables children and young people, who may not access these opportunities, to have a voice and to gain support where needed.
“The outreach programme has therefore opened up meaningful engagement between different groups of young people and statutory agencies with everyone sharing the common goal of making South Derbyshire a safer and healthier place to live, work and enjoy.”
For more information about the work of Safe and Sound and to access resources and support, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Jul 4, 2023 | News, News, Press Releases
The CEO of Derbyshire charity Safe and Sound, which supports children, young people and families affected by child exploitation, has received an honorary degree from the University of Derby.
Tracy Harrison spent 32 years in the police force, rising through the ranks from Constable to Superintendent. She received five Chief Constable’s Commendations as well as the Police long service and good conduct awards, the National British Association of Women in Policing nomination for mentoring, and the Queen’s Jubilee and British Olympics medals. When she retired from the Force in 2019 she became CEO of Safe and Sound as she wanted to work for a local charity supporting children and young people. Under her leadership the charity has become widely valued for its work in local communities in Derby and Derbyshire. Tracy received an Honorary Master of the University (HonMUniv) at the University’s awards ceremony in Buxton in recognition of her work. She received her award alongside hundreds of University of Derby graduates at the ceremony at the Buxton Campus in the Devonshire Dome.
Tracy said: “I am incredibly humbled to receive this honorary degree from the University of Derby and this is testament to the high regard with which the charity and everyone associated with it is held across the county. “Child exploitation is an issue that is easier to ignore but this recognition from the University will hopefully further raise awareness that this can happen to any child and young person in our local communities and is a real and present danger that we all need to be alert to.”
The University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Kathryn Mitchell CBE DL, added: “We were delighted to celebrate with all of our students graduating at Buxton and to have awarded this important honorary degree as part of the ceremony.
“Tracy Harrison’s work for Safe and Sound follows an exemplary career with the Police, and her passion for people and leadership have transformed the charity and ensured its long- term future. It is a pleasure to recognise her hard work and commitment to young people’s safety and wellbeing with this honorary degree.”
For more information about the work of Safe and Sound and to access resources and support, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Jun 28, 2023 | News, Press Releases
Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has secured two major grants to enable it to support and protect more children, young people and families across the county.
Firstly, Safe and Sound has received three-year funding from Children in Need for a specialist domestic abuse worker who will support young people across the city and county. The charity has also received a grant from Derbyshire County Council to fund a worker to specifically support young people in the Buxton area who are at risk of or victims of child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines drugs gangs, modern slavery, trafficking and radicalisation.
Domestic Abuse
The application to Children in Need was made because of the proven link between domestic abuse and violence in the home and the increased vulnerability of young people to grooming and child exploitation by perpetrators outside the family.
Furthermore, many young people who Safe and Sound already support have divulged that such issues at home and their feelings of isolation and despair were a contributing factor to them being groomed and exploited both online and in person.
The specialist domestic abuse worker at Safe and Sound will provide a wide range of support to young people who have witnessed or experienced domestic abuse and violence and who are now at risk or victims of exploitation. This will include 121 and group support, positive activities and therapies to boost confidence, resilience and self-esteem as well as advocacy and guidance through any safeguarding or court processes.
Derbyshire Expansion
Safe and Sound supports and protects young people across the county but applied to Derbyshire County Council for funding support to enable a worker to be based in the Buxton area to cope with increased demand in the north of the county.
Safe and Sound CEO Tracy Harrison explained that different forms of exploitation were linked and that children and young people at risk of different forms of exploitation share the same vulnerabilities. Children who are sexually exploited are trafficked across different geographical areas. Girls who are radicalised are often sexually exploited or subject of an arranged marriage.
Online grooming accounted for over 80% of sexual exploitation last year in Derbyshire. Isolated, lonely, and homeless young people get involved in gangs and are often forced to commit acts of criminality/drug trafficking. Mental health and well-being are significant issues at county and city level. Self-harm is significantly worse than national average as is alcohol related harm and prevalence of children’s mental and emotional disorders is higher than national averages.
She said: “There are indisputable links between domestic abuse and violence and child exploitation as we know the methods of control using violence and coercion follow similar patterns. Young people and families are referred to us from a number of partner agencies and by families themselves and a large number of them cite domestic abuse ‘historically’ or currently as a factor in a young person’s increased vulnerability to exploitation. We also know that adolescents who have witnessed or suffered domestic abuse and violence suffer co-occurring issues such as suicide, being involved in knife crime, gangs and becoming victims of county lines and sexual exploitation. Learning from our young people and families is a key aspect of our service and they have told us about their challenges including living in poor home conditions, witnessing domestic abuse, low esteem, isolation, mental health and low overall wellbeing.”
Mrs Harrison continued: “We have worked across Derby and parts of Derbyshire for 20 years and focus on prevention through awareness and outreach, support at the earliest opportunity and recovery through youth, transition and therapy programmes. Demand for our services to support children, young people and families affected by exploitation has increased over 100% since 2019 and, for the first time ever, we have a waiting list which is not ideal.
We have been mindful that, due to the geographical expanse of the county, we needed to have a specialist worker dedicated to supporting young people and their families in the far north of the county. She concluded: “Thanks to the support from Children in Need and Derbyshire County Council, we are now able to address two specific gaps in the support that is so badly needed for children, young people and their families in our local communities.
Our child or young person-centred work is all about empowering them to build on their strengths and develop their skills, networks and resilience to thrive independently and move forward with their lives.
Last year, Safe and Sound supported a record 343 children and young people who had been victims of or at risk of child exploitation. The charity largely works with 7-18 year olds but includes up to 25 if there are special educational needs and or disability (SEND) issues or children leaving care.
The charity works with boys and girls. Around 30% of the young people have SEND and 29% did not identify as White British. Workers also regularly support young people who identify as gay, non-binary and trans.
For more information about the work of Safe and Sound and to access resources and
support, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
