Recent high-profile child sexual exploitation cases have thrown this vile crime under the spotlight.

The many agencies who work with children – not just councils, but health services and schools – have, in too many cases, had difficulties identifying, tackling and reporting child sexual exploitation (CSE).

For example, there have been misconceptions about the way CSE appears and the particular type of profile it has to ‘fit’. This is a complex crime and its true extent is still largely unknown. What is true is that no community should assume it is immune; our fear is that there could still be unreported cases of CSE in the country.