Drugs running was like 'a paper round' for exploited son, mum says

A mother whose son was groomed by a gang at the age of 13 before being taken into care claims the local authority housed him "right in the centre of exploitation", despite repeated pleas for help.

Within months of being recruited, she said her son was being forced to deliver drugs in Grimsby for up to 36 hours at a time – a "job" he got as easily as "a paper round".

The woman, who we are not identifying, said it took two years for North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) to move her son to safety.

During that time, she said he was put at risk of continued exploitation because he was housed in accommodation she considered unsuitable.

He was eventually moved more than 250 miles (400km) away and his care placement cost £1.66m over two years.

NELC said it did not comment on individual cases, but took child criminal exploitation (CCE) extremely seriously and it was "a top priority" for the local authority and police.

"There are often very challenging situations and lessons are always being learnt," the council said.

Home Office data obtained by the BBC shows the woman, whom we are calling Sandra, is not alone in seeing her child being drawn into the world of criminality.

It shows the number of children recognised as victims of CCE in the UK almost doubled in five years to more than 3,000 in the last financial year.

The BBC investigation also found:

• One hundred and fifty three children identified as potentially at risk of criminal exploitation in North East Lincolnshire in 2025/26 – a rise of 56% in five years, with two thirds of cases aged 15 and under, according to NELC data.

• At least two teenagers, including one facing prosecution, openly selling drugs including cocaine and ketamine on social media.

• A 16-year-old boy, who is among a number of children at risk of exploitation, was charged with more than 30 crimes including assault, burglary, theft and drug offences. He continued to offend after being sentenced.

• A former NELC care worker said she was seeing an increasing number of younger children being exploited, with some "offered a bag of chips to go and get drugs".

Sandra contacted the BBC in response to a report about teenagers boasting on TikTok about stealing motorbikes.

Sandra said her son, who has autism and ADHD, was first groomed by a criminal gang at the age of 13.

Within months, he became involved in substance misuse, was frequently disappearing from home and had been recruited to steal motorbikes and deliver drugs.

"My son had been going missing," said Sandra, who works in the legal profession.

"There was no normality to what we were going through. [He] was so chaotic. We were frightened for our lives.

"I knew deep down this was not teenage behaviour. It was extreme.

"Within months, between Easter and the start of the new school term, that was it. I'd lost my son."

Sandra said she repeatedly asked the local authority for help as his behaviour rapidly deteriorated, with family members fearing for their safety.

"He was thin and gaunt. He looked ill and was covered in scars, bruises and injuries," she said.

At the age of 14, Sandra's son was taken into care following what she described as a breakdown linked to addiction and exploitation, which she said left the family unsafe due to his violent behaviour.

However, Sandra said she believed professionals failed to recognise the scale of exploitation in Grimsby when he was "placed right in the centre of the exploitation" in the town.

"I believed professionals understood these risks in the community around exploitation and I leaned on them to help give me some answers and to enable me to continue to be a mum. But the absolute opposite happened."

He was later moved to another care home 250 miles (400km) away, but within weeks the teenager fled and returned to Grimsby, before he was sent back.

In that time, the teenager was charged with a number of offences, including assault, which he committed before he was removed from the area. Following guilty pleas at Grimsby Magistrates' Youth Court in October, he received a conditional discharge, meaning he will be punished if he reoffends within the next two years.

Sandra said she had not given up hope in bringing her son home, adding: "I won't stop until we get him back."

Data obtained by the BBC through a freedom of information (FOI) request showed NELC spent almost £9m on out-of-area placements for 28 exploited children who were in care between 2021/22 and 2025/26.

The BBC identified at least three cases in which youngsters later fled care homes and returned to Grimsby, with two going on to commit offences.

The same NELC figures show the risk of criminal exploitation is increasingly affecting younger children, with the number of cases involving those aged nine and under, who are potentially vulnerable, more than doubling from 12 to 25 in the last financial year.

Of the 153 children identified as being at risk of potential exploitation in 2025/26, 108 were aged between 13 and 17 – the highest level for five years.

The council said it had seen an increase in children being identified as potentially vulnerable to exploitation because of improved information sharing and earlier intervention.

However, the Home Office statistics reveals a starker national picture, with an 85% increase in the number of CCE victims between 2021/22 and 2025/26.

One former NELC care worker, who wishes to remain anonymous, told the BBC: "I know of children as young as eight and nine who have been offered a bag of chips to go and get drugs.

"I've seen children having to deal drugs from children's homes because we can't keep them safe anymore. They're too scared to not deal the drugs."

Jane, not her real name, claimed workforce shortages, high staff turnover and reliance on agency workers were affecting safeguarding and putting children at risk of being deliberately targeted by criminal gangs.

New figures obtained by the BBC through a separate FOI request show a 20-fold increase in the number of agency workers used by NELC in its children's homes, from four in 2021/22 to 81 in 2025/26.

Between March 2022 and September 2026, almost £1.4m was spent by the council on agency supply staff.

The data also shows a relatively high turnover of staff in some care homes. In one, 18 left during the last financial year, compared with three in the previous 12 months.

"I think our social care system is breaking at the moment," said Jane. "We're losing staff at a pace of knots."

She claimed agency workers often lacked adequate training and detailed knowledge of individual children, making it harder to identify patterns of risk and protect them.

"We're not forwarding information as we should to the police, which is then leaving the children more vulnerable," she added.

Evidence seen by the BBC shows concerns were repeatedly raised with the council over a number of years about exploited children being left in unsafe situations and staff being ignored when they flagged serious incidents.

The BBC spent three days in youth courts in September and October, where cases involving a dozen children from North East Lincolnshire, including one as young as 12, were heard. Charges included assault, theft, burglary, drugs offences, criminal damage and dangerous driving.

By cross-referencing the names of those children with other sources, the BBC learnt about half of those children were at risk of CCE. Among them was a 16-year-old boy given a 12-month youth rehabilitation order at Grimsby Magistrates' Court after he pleaded guilty to carrying out more than 30 offences over a two-year period, including burglary and drugs possession.

During his sentencing, magistrates heard how there was a shortage of residential placements for children in care.

The BBC understands the boy had been placed more than 100 miles (160km) away, but returned to the town committing some of the offences he admitted.

Court documents show he has continued to offend despite being sentenced.

Ch Supt Craig Nicholson, head of safeguarding at Humberside Police, said CCE was "a complex crime to investigate".

"It is important to acknowledge that not every child who commits an offence is being criminally exploited, but every child involved in crime should be considered in the context of their age, circumstances, vulnerability and the potential influence of others," he added.

Policing minister Sarah Jones said a new child criminal exploitation offence would be introduced, targeting gangs who draw children into crime.

Five years ago, Ofsted rated the NELC's children's services inadequate when it found children were being exposed to harm because of "widespread weaknesses" in the department.

A government commissioner was subsequently appointed and a new management team brought in.

An Ofsted report last year stated services had improved and were rated good overall, with leadership and support for care leavers judged outstanding.