Rise in 'at risk' youngsters in Sheffield referred to specialist services
The number of young people at risk of child sexual exploitation being referred to specialist services in Sheffield has gone up 'massively' in the last few years
The number of young people at risk of child sexual exploitation being referred to specialist services in Sheffield has gone up 'massively' in the last few years according to the man in charge.
Last year it had 261 referrals, while four years ago there were around 85.
Phil Ashford, who is the sexual exploitation service manager at Sheffield Futures, thinks it's a sign that more people know where to get help and feel confident reporting abuse.
He said:
"We've seen a massive increase in referrals to our service over the last four years. We put that down not to the fact there are more people being exploited, but rather the fact we're finding out about more of these cases.
"Although it's not good news that young people are potentially at risk of being abused, it is very positive that people are being refereed into services like ourselves so we can support those young people."