'Child Trafficking': Experience of separated children on the move

This presentation draws upon my PhD research which examines how contemporary concepts of childhood and adolescence shape and construct the UK ‘child trafficking’ framework. The qualitative research undertaken with this group of children, provided a space to listen to their voice, in order to gain a perspective of children’s own accounts of their lived experiences of trafficking. Engaging children and young people through interactive and creative methods facilitated young people to share their experiences, of their personal journeys of separation, movement and trafficking, and their experiences of services within the current UK ‘child trafficking’ framework. The study presents children’s own accounts of their own situation and critically analyses the social construction of ‘child trafficking’ through the experiences of children and young people.
‘Child trafficking’ has wider policy contexts that cut across numerous fields including economic and social policy, child protection, migration, human rights, internal security and crime-prevention. This relatively new area of social policy development and accompanying evolving debates in ‘child trafficking’ highlight the importance and topicality of this field of study. This study intends to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on separated and moving children and young people whilst addressing key gaps of previous research undertaken, particularly in engaging children and young people as active research informants, on matters directly affecting them. Intended audiences of the study include policy-makers, child protection services, support organisations assisting children defined as ‘trafficked’, social work and other practitioners in the field.