The report of the Parliamentary inquiry into the effectiveness of legislation for tackling child sexual exploitation and trafficking within the UK has been published by Barnardos, who have been working with the inquiry alongside other civil society organisations. Key recommendations include:
- The Sexual Offences Act 2003 was deemed largely fit for purpose in respect of tackling child sexual exploitation and trafficking within the UK
- Awareness of CSE is increasing and legislation is not necessarily the best mechanism to achieve such an objective
- The police and Crown Prosecution Service should also promote that the lesser offences should be charged where appropriate before offending escalates and not be used simply as alternatives to more serious charges for the purposes of plea bargaining
- The Government should ensure training on use of the National Referral Mechanism for trafficking within the UK is delivered to relevant agencies
- It was further recommended that the Government amend legislation in order to strengthen Child Abduction Warning Notices by placing them on a statutory footing and create an offence of breaching the conditions of a notice.
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