Community Guardians are volunteers, who aim to prevent child exploitation across Cleveland
Volunteers, who regularly come into contact with young people, will be trained to help identify and support children at risk of exploitation. They may be hairdressers, leisure centre staff or people in similar positions.
Community members will be given the appropriate tools and training to recognise sexual, criminal and online exploitation.
They will be expected to create a safe environment, in which young people can seek help.
Community Guardians will help statutory agencies respond to potential threats to a young person’s well being. They will do this by raising concerns via community safety networks and by using Harm Outside the Home (HOTH) safeguarding process.
There is an expectation that the new programme will not only help to tackle all forms of child exploitation but will also address related issues such as youth violence, radicalisation and missing from home, care or education.
Ivison Trust
National charity the Ivison Trust is responsible for recruiting, training and supporting Community Guardians’ volunteers.
The Trust’s mission is to keep children safe from exploitation. They aim to do this by supporting their parents, disrupting exploiters and working in partnership with police and family services.
Cleveland OPCC has invested £70,000 in the project’s first year.
However, it is hoped that Community Guardians could run for up to four years.
To find out more about becoming a Community :Guardian, go to the Ivison Trust web page.