Thousands of children across England and Wales are exploited into criminal activity each year, often through grooming, coercion and intimidation. The government's 2026 Youth Justice White Paper introduces new proposals to tackle child criminal exploitation and better protect vulnerable young people.

Switalskis has welcomed this week's Parliamentary debate on changes to the Sentencing Act, saying it is encouraging to see MPs recognising the impact that the early release of offenders convicted of sexual offences can have on survivors.

The abuse suffered by thousands of boys at Medomsley Detention Centre has recently been recognised as one of the most shocking institutional abuse scandals in Britain. Yet, despite the scale and seriousness of what happened, many survivors spent decades waiting to be heard.

At Switalskis, we understand that for many survivors of child sexual exploitation, a criminal conviction is not the end of their journey.

Online platforms have become embedded in our everyday life. Marketplaces such as Vinted, alongside social media platforms including Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and TikTok, are widely used by millions of people every day.

An Emergency Protection Order (EPO) is a short term court order that allows the local authority to take immediate steps to ensure the safety of a child who is at risk of significant harm, This allows the child to be removed from their home.

For millions of couples in England and Wales, living together without marrying has become a normal part of family life. Under current law, unmarried couples have very limited legal rights if their relationship ends, and those protections are even weaker if their partner dies.

The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has issued a formal apology on behalf of the British state for the historic forced adoption practices that affected an estimated 185,000 mothers and children in England and Wales over the course of many years.