Vulnerable children treated as suspects not victims - report

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) needs to improve how it responds to reports of missing children, a new report has found.

The Criminal Justice Inspection (CJI) examined how the criminal justice system as a whole deals with child criminal exploitation (CCE).

Inspectors found the PSNI does not have a clear model in place for tackling CCE, with frontline police officers and staff lacking "awareness and training".

Det Ch Supt Zoe McKee said the PSNI acknowledged the report and welcomed the opportunity to "further strengthen" its responses.

The Department of Justice describes CCE as a form of child abuse.

It happens when an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to "coerce, control, manipulate or deceive" anyone under the age of 18 into criminal activity.

It can result in children and young people being exploited into storing drugs or weapons, becoming involved in drug dealing, or taking part in other forms of criminality.

The report said young people were "treated as suspects rather than victims".

It highlighted one case, where a 15-year-old girl was arrested on suspicion of drugs offences, but the man with her was not.

Officers believed the substances seized belonged to the man and were carried by the child, but in this instance, a link was not made to CCE.

The report said the police interview placed a "reliance on the child making admissions", rather than pursuing an evidence-led investigation.

It also said the girl may have been reluctant to give evidence against the potential exploiter, who she was related to, and that this was not recognised by officers.

The inspectors also said there was no evidence any actions were taken to safeguard the child.

CJI inspectors said frontline PSNI officers and staff lacked sufficient training to identify, investigate or disrupt instances of CCE.

It found many missing children were recorded as concerns for safety rather than as missing person reports.

There was also evidence of victim-blaming language in some records they examined during fieldwork.

Audits of 34 PSNI files found possible cases of CCE were not "explicitly identified", and there was no evidence that police "effectively investigated or disrupted" those suspected of exploitation.

The report found the criminal justice system's response was "inconsistent and, in many respects, inadequate".

In another case study highlighted in the report, inspectors said police had missed an opportunity to to recognise that a young man was vulnerable to exploitation.

He had been known to police since he was 14 years old, due to a history of criminal behaviour fuelled by drug use.

He was often in debt to drug dealers, and had been approached to join a loyalist paramilitary group.

While he declined, he was still involved in other criminal activities and had 20 convictions by the time he was 21.

It was only after multi-agency support was put in place that he was able to become drug-free and rebuild a relationship with his family.

The report highlighted this could have been an opportunity for police to recognise the young man was vulnerable to CCE, and to take safeguarding measures on his behalf.

CJI's chief inspector, Jacqui Durkin, said the "exact scale" of CCE in Northern Ireland was unknown.

She called for a "joined up approach across the PSNI" to understand what resources are being used to tackle child exploitation and "to disrupt offenders and bring perpetrators to justice".

Durkin said the report also highlighted many reports around children are "reports of concern" rather than missing persons.

"Unfortunately what we found is that children who go missing from children's homes... sometimes there wasn't that curiosity about where they were or who they had been with," she added.

She said officers needed to treat "children as children" and not just focus on their behaviour or alleged behaviour.

She also wants children to be made aware of the different kinds of exploitation so they can be better protected.

Det Ch Spt McKee said the PSNI welcomed the report's findings and recommendations, adding that "significant work" was under way to tackle CCE.

"Despite ongoing financial and workforce constraints, our specialist officers and staff in Public Protection Branch and across local policing continue to work hard to better protect some of the most vulnerable children in our society," she said.

Justice Minister Naomi Long said victims needed to be seen as children requiring protection not criminalisation.

She said there has already been "significant" work done to tackle CCE through an action plan launched in September 2024.

"This programme of work is ongoing and includes strengthening early identification, enhancing collaborative problem-solving, providing staff training, and prioritising timely intervention to prevent harm," she said.