Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department plans to issue national guidance to local authorities on tackling child criminal exploitation through county lines.

In July 2018 the Government published statutory guidance on inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ guidance is intended for and should be read and followed by frontline practitioners and strategic leaders in local authorities, together with other organisations and agencies that commission and provide services for children and families. The guidance specifically highlights the risk to children from exploitation by criminal gangs and organised crime groups such as county lines. It also makes clear that children who may be alleged perpetrators should also be assessed to understand the impact of contextual issues on their safety and welfare.

The Government is committed to increasing awareness of county lines exploitation amongst those best placed to spot it and published guidance for frontline professionals in July 2017, which was reviewed and updated in September 2018, on how to identify potential victims of county lines and appropriate referral routes.