Child Sexual Exploitation - additional points

What else do we know about Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)?

• The key factor that distinguishes CSE from other forms of child sexual abuse is the concept of exchange - the victim is enticed; coerced; manipulated; forced or deceived into engaging in the sexual abuse in return for something
• Practitioners can misinterpret CSE as consensual and can fail to recognise the element of exploitation
• CSE is typified by a power imbalance in favour of the perpetrator
• Children and young people in care (particularly those in residential care) have a disproportionate risk of CSE
• The majority of CSE victims are living at home
• Most CSE concerns are reported by practitioners; friends or family; or by proactive investigations rather than by self-disclosure by the victim
• No single agency can, or should, address the challenge of preventing and responding to CSE in isolation - a multi-agency approach is much more effective