#countylines #youthwork #informaleducation #teamdevelopment #historyanddevelopment #applyingmethods #effectiveyouthwork #ywcr #exploitation #youngpeople
Origins and History
Whilst the illegal drug trading has a long tenure in communities, the increase in mobile technologies and developed transport links has seen the movement of substances take a new lease in society. A significant moment in the early history of county lines activity in the UK can be acknowledged in the work within communities by youth and community workers in the 1980s and 1990s.
In the 90’s, I had the privilege of working in the Toxteth area of Liverpool and M16 area of Manchester, these incredible urban areas where the activities in the communities shifted by the clock and communities experienced a rise in drug trafficking and gang-related violence. Young people at this time were seen a peripheral to most and yet the youth workers I alongside with were clear that as part of the fabric in the distribution chain that this was being overlooked.
Preying on the vulnerable and poor with rotational requirement for young people’s involvement as runners on pre-paid BMX’s and pagers and mobile phones to share information in Police activity in the area, the movement of substances had a business model and logistics system that brought money and yet debt into these areas.
The industrial decline with regards to employment had an impact here too and it would be dismissive to not acknowledge this.
This emergence of ‘socially’ organised criminal networks operating within communities with ‘known’ community members using profile and status to influence involvement, the high value/low ethics community cultures were often based in inner-city neighbourhoods, which controlled the supply and distribution of illegal drugs and established some social norms that were threatening is opposed. On occasion, youth work teams were approached to justify their reason for being in a particular area and to an extent profiled by gangs, tolerated and ignored.
Criminal gangs began to expand their operations beyond their traditional urban territories, recognising the potential for profit in supplying drugs to smaller towns and rural areas. In these villages and towns, there was substantially less competition and less scrutiny from either local authority and from the Police. The culture of silence in communities, particularly in outlying areas and introducing wider criminality and exploitation has continued to present day. In smaller geographical areas, the supply opportunities are restricted and therefore the market is strong and those at the top of the tree can remain untouchable once in place.
The earlier county lines operations were often relatively informal with individual gang members traveling to other areas to sell drugs on behalf of their local gang. However, as these operations became more profitable, the supply and distribution ‘organising’ became rooted in communities and is a stable base of inequality subject to exploitation. Gangs established dedicated supply networks for distributing drugs to other areas, recruiting local dealers and enforcers to work on their behalf.
By the early 2000s, county lines had become a significant issue for the Police across the UK, and this is where the complicated development of multi-agency working comes in. The difficulty at this time was that of organisational agenda. The Police were solely looking to reduce the impact through criminalisation alone; social services are seeking to apply the children act in relation to child protection and safeguarding. This a complex challenge in more rural areas and informal education and youth work directly working to support young people impacted or involved through education, safe spaces and alternative activity responses. Gangs are now using tactics to evade detection, such as using multiple phone lines and encrypted messaging apps to communicate. In line with the rise of concern about the impact of drug-related crime and violence on the communities affected by county lines activity. The responses have continued to develop and opportunities such as working with ideological agreement between agencies and applying models to approach the issue. I worked with a wide range of organisations in an authority area recently and the tensions of boundaries, funding, methods, social requirements clashed until the group were able to see the value in working towards common aims.
The present rise of online drug marketing through secure tech channels adds to the challenge that authorities and organisations. The shift from the 90’s to contemporary practice of local authority and provision boundaries has adapted to offer a more realistic response for instance for the detached youth worker. There was a period in my own work where a coastal park was on a boundary line and neither authority had any responsibility; as a detached youth work team, it was clear that this was where much criminal activity was taking place due to the limitation of boundaries at that time.
Defining factors in County Lines
It is important to understand and gather important data that equate to the factors that encourage a clarity around county lines and the impact on young people. The following are valuable to identify in any area to be able to form a strategic and operational response. To understand triadic reciprocal method to support youth work team understanding the following link will take you to a resource; HERE.
Geographical Factors: There are counties that have irregular boundaries due to geographical features such as rivers, mountains, or coastlines. These features can make defining county lines more complicated as the direct nature of other areas visited is not easily identified. Understanding the train routes, including the various stops and ongoing travel networks, timings and return journeys can assist.
Historical Context: County lines often have historic roots in a community, which may be influenced by housing patterns, territorial conflict, or cultural divisions. Changes in governance, such as mergers or splits of counties into local or unitary authority, can add to the complexity. The change in leadership over time can reset some of the active work taking place or often comes with a re-design of response.
Legal and Administrative Regulations: The process of defining and altering county lines is governed by legal and administrative functions in an area. This can vary between different authorities, so seek guidance on how the boundaries function and establish which contacts in which area may require relationship development. These local policies may involve legislative procedures, administrative orders, or local agreement on decisions about response, intervention, or action by various bodies that can change over the boundary.
Political Considerations: County lines may be influenced by political factors where a specific political party has interest in an area. The challenge of social abjection of some communities is identifiable when it comes to a lack of support or intervention in certain communities.
Infrastructure and Services: County lines can affect the provision of services and infrastructure such as schools, health facilities, and transport networks. Disparities in service delivery or infrastructure development between neighbouring counties can further complicate the issue.
Authority Coordination: Effective collaboration between bordering counties are essential for addressing shared challenges, managing resources, and implementing regional policies. However, differences in priorities, resources, or leadership may reduce effectiveness.
The role of youth work in responding to county lines
Youth work plays a role in addressing issues like county lines, which involve the exploitation of vulnerable young people. There are a variety of key methods for the value of social informal education on a spectrum of responses.
Prevention: Youth workers can engage with potentially at-risk young people early on to prevent their involvement in county lines activity. This can involves focusing on building trusting relationships and providing opportunities for positive development. The nature of alternative understanding comes from the listening and elegant challenge that the youth worker should be skilled in; practising elegant challenge in team meetings and utilising deep listening skills to enable storytelling to capture key messages from young people. The activity focus should be planned and considered in relation to both transitional and cascade learning and have a direct link to enabling confidence, detailing understanding, true aspirations and educative understanding of potential challenges of involvement in county lines.
Education and Awareness: Youth workers can take a role in educating young people about the risks and consequences of county lines activity, beyond the dangers of drug trafficking, exploitation, and violence. The focus on self and reflection, engaging in positive activities speaks without speaking often and can be evaluated with groups. The youth and community worker can also raise awareness in communities to encourage dialogue regarding community aspiration and how organisations can be on hand to support. Change can be slow, but working with community philosophy is an aspect of direct work with communities and can draw in many partners such as local busineses and shop owners, schools and colleges, families and wider organisations.
Support and Intervention: For young people directly involved in county lines, youth workers can offer tailored support and interventions. This might include active listening, access to change opportunities, housing support, and assistance in exiting exploitative situations. On the surface the simplicity of this list is arguably not so; the importance of skilled youth work teams that are active in acknowledgement, realistic responses and an ability to form actions plans with young people that can be supported.
Partnership Working: Youth workers often collaborate with Police, social services, schools, and other agencies to identify and support young people at risk of or affected by county lines or exploitation. This integrated approach ensures a co-ordinated response to the complex needs of vulnerable young people. The professional youth worker should be working to establish credibility and assert and equitable professional role in multi-agency partnerships promoting the effectiveness of youth work and informal education to enable voice and agency of the profession.
Advocacy: Youth workers advocate for the rights and needs of young people affected by county lines, encouraging access to support services, support in legal processes that may be active, and voice the concerns young people may have to adult communities and organisations. Effective advocacy enables young people to regain control over their lives and make positive choices for their future.
Community Engagement: Engaging with the wider community is vital in tackling county lines. Youth workers facilitate community conversations, promote understanding, and challenge stigma surrounding youth involvement in criminal exploitation. They encourage communities to come together and acknowledge the powerlessness that young people often have in challenging situations.
Training and Capacity Building: Youth workers require ongoing training and support to effectively respond to county lines and other forms of exploitation. Continuous professional development ensures they have the knowledge, skills, and resources to engage with young people and safeguard them from harm. Training also works to inform the development of policies and procedures internally and with external stakeholders.
Whilst in places there are similarities and overlap in approaches that combines prevention, intervention, advocacy, and community engagement. Understanding that well planned and considered youth work can make a significant impact in addressing county lines and supporting the well-being of vulnerable young people. This is done by clearly determining the type of action and percentage of effort in use of methods. Does the team have the knowledge and skills to focus on the specific approach? Plan, skill up and identify clear aims and examine findings in review that may adapt the approach further. It is essential that both safeguarding issues are effectively reported and criminal activity in communities are highlighted to the Police.
The process of building trusting relationships with young people and providing safe spaces to share concerns and experiences without judgement holds value in communities. Identifying vulnerabilities that may make young people targets by county lines gangs such as the lack of support network, substance abuse in communities and familial problems. The connection aligns to informal education and principles of working from a starting from strengths or assets-based understanding to affect the change young people aspire to. Youth work has a validity in developing life skills with young people that can be developed as transitional skills. Problem solving, resilience, decision making, communication skills focused on the inter-connection of county lines and alternative is an example of how youth work when focused can relate to an effectiveness and should not be underestimated.
Working alongside young people to facilitate peer support groups or mentoring activities such as ‘shark watch’; where young people can connect with peers who have overcome similar challenges and receive guidance and support from positive role models within the peer group.
Youth workers can conduct research and risk assessments with young people to identify hazards and risks to develop safety plans and strategies for managing self and others. There is a link to a resource that may be useful HERE.
Youth workers can advocate for systemic changes to address the root causes of youth involvement in county lines activities, such as poverty, inequality, and lack of opportunities, to create a more supportive and inclusive society for all young people. The validity of the professional voice carries important messaging from young people directly into the centre of wider professional discussions and aid in cohesive responses.
In order for young people to break from a cycle of crime and to reintegrate into a community, this can be supported by youth work and the important role that informal education has in prevention, support and intervention. The importance of non-judgemental, advocacy and belief in young people carries weight in the arena. Whilst youth work alone cannot remove county lines, it can significantly mitigate its impact by direct work with young people, strengthening communities, and addressing the underlying factors that make individuals vulnerable to exploitation by criminal gangs. Want to know more? get in touch if you want to chat through further.
I am interested to understand the youth work landscape around County Lines, respond to the poll that follows and add a comment on the article post and tell us about your experience in youth work, any top tips or recommendations for the field on working on topics of exploitation.
County Lines is a feature of Youth Work in your area
Yes
No
Sometimes
Never
#countylines #youthwork #informaleducation #teamdevelopment #historyanddevelopment #applyingmethods #effectiveyouthwork #ywcr #exploitation #youngpeople