On March 19th, the Love146 Europe team facilitated a gathering of NGOs at the House of Commons in Westminster London to bridge conversations…
On March 19th, the Love146 Europe team facilitated a gathering of NGOs at the House of Commons in Westminster London to bridge conversations on those working on international trafficking issues and those working on the sexual exploitation of young people in the UK. The event was called Getting It Right For Children.
Gaz Kishere, the Love146 UK Operations Director commented,
“while attending a child sex exploitation (CSE) conference in the north of England, I found that I was the only person present working on trafficking issues amidst a sea of people working on CSE. I was referenced in coffee conversations as, ‘Oh but you work with trafficked children!’.
I quickly became aware that the UK landscape differs from the US greatly in that domestic exploitation is not viewed in the same context as human trafficking and whilst these arenas have distinct nuances, I could not help but think that the separation was not adding quality to our service provision, prevention, education or collaborative strategies.
In addition there will be different government departments and ministers responsible for these two different (but same) arenas and who may pass each other in the corridors of Parliament without conversation. In reality, this simply mirrors how many agencies will be working.”
Around twenty agencies came together at the commons where we heard from Barnardo’s Child Trafficking and Child Sex Exploitation (CSE) representatives, allowing the group to hear what one agency is contributing to this field. The Love146 Team also had those present at the gathering split into groups where they were asked to imagine a better future for children.
“We are all very aware of what isn’t working, but unless we know what we are working towards, better care, a collaborative response, communities toxic to traffickers, and exploitation proof children – we won’t fully appreciate our need for one another,” Kishere said.
Love146 have been asked to host further gatherings to give voice to other agencies and continue this collaborative environment.
