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County Lines

Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) & “County Lines”

What is “County Lines”?

  • A child is groomed by a criminal gang, then exploited to transport drugs and money from one area (county) to another
  • The child may be trafficked to the gang’s ‘trap houses’ miles away from home, to find ‘customers’, deal with rival gangs and sell drugs
  • To the gang, the child is an expendable commodity. They’re likely to face violence and sexual exploitation
  • The ‘line’ refers to the phone line that the gang uses for selling drugs

What are the signs to look out for?

A child may:

  • Receive an excessive numbers of texts or calls, or have multiple phones
  • Be anxious if they can’t check or respond to calls and messages
  • Use drugs or be found carrying a large amount of drugs
  • Be secretive – about where they’re going after school, or what they’re doing online
  • Be meeting with older peers or adults outside of school
  • Have money, expensive clothes or items that they can’t or won’t explain, including weapons
  • Become increasingly disruptive or aggressive, or isolated/withdrawn
  • Use sexual, drug-related or violent language you wouldn’t expect them to know
  • Look particularly tired or dishevelled
  • Show physical signs of abuse, such as bruising or bleeding
  • Carry hotel cards or keys for unknown places

Listen for children using any of these key terms:

  • “Bando” – House used for storing and selling drugs
  • “Ting” – Weapon used for protection
  • “The line/trap line/deal line” – Number or phone line used to take drug orders
  • “Worker/runner” – Child groomed and exploited to sell drugs
  • “Going OT” – When a child is being sent “out there” to another area to transport and sell drugs
  • “Bagged/spun” – Arrested or stopped by the police while carrying drugs
  • “Pebbs/pebble” – Small quantities of drugs

Action to prevent exploitation:

Be informed:

  • Both boys and girls can be exploited
  • Children between the ages of 10 and 17 and vulnerable adults are targeted
  • Children from all backgrounds are targeted. Those with particular vulnerabilities may be at more risk
  • Exploitation is taking place in towns and villages across the south west of England, irrespective of wealth or location

Be part of the solution:

  • Know where your child, or the children you are responsible for are and who they are spending their time with.
  • Be aware of what children are doing on the internet and who they may be interacting with.
  • Speak with your child about the realities of child exploitation.
  • Encourage and maintain communication and involvement in positive activities.

Reporting a concern:

If you are concerned about exploitation in your community, contact your local police on 101

Alternatively you can report it to Crimestoppers anonymously by calling 0800 555 111 or visit https://crimestoppers-uk.org

In an emergency, or if a crime is ongoing, always dial 999.

Useful websites:

 

  • Ofsted logo
  • United against Bullying logo
  • Eco Schools logo
  • John Muir logo
  • Pearsons logo
  • Careers hub logo