County lines is a term used when drug gangs and organised crime networks, from cities, expand their operations to smaller towns, exploiting children to sell and transport drugs or move money on their behalf. Often these children are made to travel across counties (usually on trains or coaches) and use dedicated mobile phone lines to supply drugs.
Typified by some form of power imbalance, county lines exploitation often involves children who are vulnerable, and this can include children living in foster care. It is vital foster carers understand what county lines means and can how to look out for the signs of exploitation.
Take action
As well as being vigilant, looking for signs of county lines activity and understanding criminal terminology, it is also vital for foster carers to communicate with the children and young people in their care, and to be open-minded and non-judgmental in these interactions.
If there is any concern that someone is involved in county lines, foster carers should seek support, and notify their social worker and the child’s social worker.
- Fearless offers information and advice about crime and criminality and provides an anonymous platform through which to give information about crime.
- The National Crime Agency also provides further information and support for what to do if you have concerns.
- There is government guidance regarding county lines available here.
County lines recruitment
Gangs recruit and use children and young people usually between the ages of 14-17 to move drugs and money for them. But children as young as eight have been involved.
Anecdotal evidence suggests children are often targeted because they are less likely to be known to police and more likely to receive lenient sentences if caught. County lines groups tend to use younger members to identify and target other children, either through personal or social media links.
Targeting children in care
It is recognised children in care are at disproportionate risk of being groomed and exploited in county lines. Children in care can often be targeted because they are seen as vulnerable due to their experiences of personal trauma which might include poor mental health and wellbeing, low self-esteem, isolation from family and friends and traumatic experiences at home.
Intimidation and manipulation
Gangs can use emotional abuse, psychological coercion and often violence to recruit and control children. Some gang leaders will get gang members to mug ‘new recruits’ and take the money or drugs they were carrying. This means the young people are ‘in debt’ to the gang for ‘losing’ the items, and these drug debts force them into further county lines activities. Gangs will sometimes threaten family members of children, using violence and intimidation to make sure they cooperate.
Children can be heavily manipulated and often do not see themselves as targets or victims. They do not always understand they may have been groomed into getting involved in criminal activity. Therefore, it is important to be vigilant, to spot the signs and to seek support if there is suspicion someone in the fostering household may be at risk of exploitation.
County lines is an example of child criminal exploitation. This is a form of child abuse, where children are exploited to commit crimes. Other forms of criminal exploitation include child sexual abuse 'exploitation', trafficking, gang, and knife crime. Victims of county lines may also experience other overlapping forms of exploitation.
Spotting the signs
Here are some of the signs of exploitation for foster carers to watch out for in the children in their care:
- Are they frequently going missing from school or home?
- Are they travelling alone to places far away from home?
- Do they suddenly have lots of money/new clothes/new technology (including mobile phones)?
- Are they receiving a lot more calls or messages than usual
- Are they carrying or selling drugs?
- Are they carrying weapons or know people that have access to weapons?
- Are they in a relationship with or spending time with someone/people that are older and controlling?
- Do they have unexplained injuries?
- Do they seem very reserved or like they have something to hide?
- Do they seem scared?
- Are they self-harming?
A few things to look out for in properties in the neighbourhood:
- An increase in people coming and going
- An increase in cars or bikes outside
- Litter outside
- Signs of drug use
- You haven’t seen the person who lives there recently or, when you have, they have been anxious or distracted.
Terminology
Criminals are rarely open about their practices, so it is useful to understand some of the common terms used to describe criminal behaviours.
- Clean skin – someone unknown to the police or children’s services.
- Cuckooing – the practice of take over the home of a vulnerable person through violence and intimidation, making it a base for selling or manufacturing drugs (known as a trap house – see below).
- Going country – the most popular term to describe county lines activity. It can also mean the act of travelling to another city/town to deliver drugs or money.
- Trapping – the act of selling drugs. Trapping can refer to the act of moving drugs from one town to another or the act of selling drugs in a location.
- Trap house – a building used as a base from where drugs are sold (or sometimes manufactured). These houses are usually occupied by adult drug users, but sometimes young people are also forced to stay there.
- Trap line or deal line – a mobile phone specifically for the purpose of running and selling of drugs.