Sociology in the News: British Boys at Risk of Modern Slavery

New research by the Centre for Social Justice think tank in conjunction with the charity Justice and Care has found that almost half of the victims of criminal exploitation are boys under the age of 18.

Referrals to the National Referral Mechanism, which is used to identify those at risk of exploitation, found that 45% of referrals were for British boys. Two thirds of referrals were of British teenagers and vulnerable adults who were at risk of being ‘forced, coerced or groomed into committing crime for someone else’s benefit’.

The main issue highlighted by the report was that the profile of those being referred was associated with criminality and that as a result authorities were not taking the potential for exploitation seriously. Examples of such referrals included boys being coerced into ‘county lines’ gangs, which would not typically be associated with the term ‘modern slavery’.

The Independent anti-slavery commissioner, Eleanor Lyons, has called for criminal exploitation to be redefined as a form of modern slavery to ensure that police forces, the Crown Prosecution Service and the judiciary focus on the coercive element of such criminal activities.

The case brings about many elements that students will have studied during their work in the crime and deviance unit and has links to the education topic area as well. There are some selected questions below, but the series of articles is great for looking at concepts throughout the course.

Read more about the case from this article in the Guardian (11/2/24) and answer the questions that follow:

1. The report highlights how British boys are most likely to be victims of modern slavery. What social process or form of crime do we usually associate modern slavery with?

2. The article mentions different possible causes of criminal exploitation. Using your knowledge of sociological theories of crime and deviance suggest one theory that might explain why young boys could be vulnerable to criminal exploitation.

3. The article mentions different ways in which the government are looking to intervene. Suggest one way that left realists would look to tackle the issues raised.

4. Suggest one sociological explanation for why the police and authorities do not see British boys as being victims of criminal exploitation.

5. Criminal exploitation and modern slavery are associated with what type of crimes? What social changes have led to the increase in these forms of criminal activity?