Why Summer Holidays Bring a Surge in Child Criminal Exploitation – And What We Can Do About It
As schools break up for summer, many children and young people look forward to rest, play, and time with family. But for some, this time of year brings a very different experience – one of risk, vulnerability, and exploitation.
Summer holidays are now recognised as a high-risk period for child criminal exploitation, with criminal networks using this gap in supervision and safeguarding to target, groom and recruit young people into illegal activities such as drug trafficking via county lines, radicalisation, and more.
What is County Lines?
County lines is a term used in the UK to describe the criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults by gangs and organised crime networks. These groups use mobile phone “lines” to traffic illegal drugs—usually from cities into smaller towns and rural areas. Children are groomed, manipulated, and often threatened into transporting drugs, money, or weapons, sometimes across long distances. County lines activity is a form of modern slavery and child abuse, with victims frequently exposed to extreme violence, coercion, and long-term psychological harm.
📈 What the Evidence Shows
- Government, police and children’s charities all agree: exploitation increases over the school holidays, particularly in the summer. Here’s what the latest data and reports reveal:
- Over 14,500 children were identified as at risk of or involved in child criminal exploitation in 2023–24 (UK Home Office).
- The National Crime Agency (NCA) tracked 4,000+ named children involved in county lines activity by 2021.
- County lines referrals rose by 31% from 2019 to 2020 (NRM statistics), with a further increase to 2,281 referrals in 2022 – most of them boys.
- In Wales, North Wales Police reported 18 active lines in their region in 2023 – double the previous year – and identified 65 children, including some as young as 11, as victims.
- In England, high-exporting cities like London, Birmingham and Manchester remain hubs for county lines networks, with rural and coastal areas on the receiving end.
Why Summer Is So Dangerous
The long summer break creates the perfect conditions for exploitation: less supervision, more time online, and fewer professionals spotting warning signs.
Cleveland Police highlights the risk:
“During school holidays, the risk increases. Gangs actively recruit children when they’re more available and less protected.” – Cleveland Police
Key risks during summer include:
- Reduced adult supervision at home and in the community
- More time spent online – increasing exposure to groomers
- Lack of affordable holiday activities or safe places to go
- School closures – leading to fewer safeguarding eyes
A 2023 Barnardo’s survey revealed:
- 46% of parents struggled to afford summer childcare or clubs
- 72% of children expected to spend more time online
- 8% planned to meet someone in person they’d only met online
- 1 in 10 children were worried about encountering gangs locally
Who Is Most at Risk?
While any child can be exploited, risks are higher for those who are:
- Excluded from school or in alternative education
- In care or from unstable home environments
- Living with SEND or struggling with mental health
- Experiencing poverty or hardship
- Without safe spaces or positive adult influence
A 2019 NCA study found 100% of county lines-involved children had been excluded from school at some point.
Awareness and early intervention are key. Professionals need to be equipped to spot the signs and take action.
What Needs to Happen
To keep children safe during the school holidays, we must increase—not reduce—our vigilance.
As Barnardo’s rightly puts it:
“School holidays shouldn’t mean a break from safeguarding. In fact, they demand more awareness, not less.” – Barnardo’s
What You Can Do About It
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when faced with the scale of child criminal exploitation and county lines. But small, informed actions taken by professionals, parents, carers and communities can make a significant difference. Here’s how you can help:
For Support Workers:
- Build trust with the children and young people you work with. Consistent, caring relationships help children feel safe enough to speak up.
- Keep a written log of concerns or changes in behaviour — even small details can help form a bigger picture when safeguarding concerns are raised.
- Stay alert to patterns: multiple phones, controlling relationships, or repeated absences are potential red flags.
- Know your safeguarding pathway and don’t hesitate to escalate concerns through the appropriate channels.
For Families and Carers:
- Be curious, not confrontational. Ask open questions and make it clear children can talk to you about anything.
- Look out for signs like unexplained gifts, money, sudden mood swings, secrecy, or new older friends.
- Trust your instincts — if something doesn’t feel right, seek advice from school safeguarding leads or local authorities.
- Keep lines of communication open with schools, youth groups, and other professionals involved with your child’s care.