Children on the margins

Inquiry5

 

 

 

Report

On 5 December the Committee published its written report (PDF 1.5MB)
On the 21 January the Committee received a response (PDF 280KB) to the report from the Welsh Government. A plenary debate took place on Wednesday 12 March 2025.

 

The Children, Young People and Education Committee held an inquiry into children on the margins, which in summary relates to missing children and those vulnerable to criminal exploitation.

This inquiry followed on from the Committee’s report into radical change for care experienced children. From the evidence received, care experienced children are estimated to make up almost 40% of children who go missing in Wales. Also, it has been reported that specific groups thought to be at risk of being ‘criminalised’ include care experienced children, unaccompanied asylum seeker-children, some groups of children who are experiencing challenges within the education system, and black and minority ethnic children and young people.

 

This inquiry focused on:

 

Missing children:

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>>>Nature and scale: of the issue and regional variations

>>>At risk groups: including the impact of care experience and out of area placements

>>>Practice: issues such as information sharing and data collection.

>>>Policy: The effectiveness of devolved policy and practice responses, including Welsh Government oversight. Whether there is effective read across to relevant WG (Welsh Government) strategies.

>>>Devolved and UK powers: How joined up is the interface between devolved and non-devolved policy such as criminal and youth justice.

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Children who are victims of criminal exploitation:

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>>>Nature and scale: across Wales and regional variations (e.g. traditional, drug related, sexual, financial).

>>>At risk groups: including care experience, children experiencing trauma in the home, and some groups of children who are experiencing challenges within the education system.

>>>Policy: The effectiveness of devolved policy including Welsh Government oversight. Whether there effective read across to relevant WG strategies such as Child Sexual Exploitation.

>>>Practice: Approaches to prevention, community resilience, early intervention, support provided and exit strategies for victims. Practice issues such as information sharing and data collection.

>>>Devolved and UK powers: How joined up is the interface between devolved and non-devolved policy such as criminal and youth justice. Are there any points of tension between criminal law and safeguarding.

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Other groups: The Committee also considered whether other groups of children are also “on the margins”. These were groups of children in circumstances that required a specific response from children’s services or other statutory providers and for which there were concerns about the current policy or practice.

 

Evidence gathering

The Committee took some formal oral evidence from Care Inspectorate Wales and scrutinised members of the Welsh Government at the meeting on 19 September 2024. Following the meeting the Committee requested some further information from the Welsh Government, this was received (PDF 308KB) on 09 October 2024.

 

The Committee held two stakeholder events with frontline practitioners, policy experts, academics and other stakeholders. A report summarising the findings of the stakeholder events is available (PDF 257KB).

 

The Committee also carried out engagement visits to talk to frontline practitioners, policy experts, children and other stakeholders about issues relevant to the inquiry. A report summarising the findings of the engagement visits is available (PDF 219KB). Following the visit to Hillside Secure Unit the Committee wrote (PDF 159KB) to the Welsh Government for some follow-up information. On 6 September, the Committee received (PDF 267KB) a response.

 

The Senedd's Citizen Engagement Team carried out interviews with five young people and two parents from South Wales who have survived criminal exploitation to support the Committee's work. Their views and experiences were anonymised and summarised in a report (PDF 203KB), and were also portrayed by actors in a short film. The report and film were shown to the Committee on 6 November 2024.

 

Consultation

The Committee launched a call for written evidence on 23 January 2024. The consultation closed on 28 March 2024. All the responses have been published.

 

The Committee also wrote to a number of organisations specifically to ask for additional written evidence to supplement its wider called for evidence:

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>>>Association of Directors of Education in Wales (ADEW) (PDF 138KB)
Response from the Association of Directors of Education in Wales - 23 August 2024 (PDF 363KB)

>>>British Transport Police (PDF 137KB)

>>>Chair of Policing in Wales (PDF 137KB)

Response from Policing Wales – 23 August 2024 (PDF 457KB)

>>>Chair of the Welsh Chief Officer Group (PDF 138KB)

>>>Chair of Youth Offending Team Managers Cymru (PDF 138KB)

>>>NHS Health Boards (PDF 137KB)

Response from Aneurin Bevan University Health Board – 9 August 2024 (PDF 289KB)

Response from Hywel Dda University Health Board – 23 August 2024 (PDF 127KB)

Response from Powys Teaching Health Board – 23 August 2024 (PDF 221KB)

Response from Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board – 30 August 2024 (PDF 369KB)

>>>Public Health Wales (PDF 137KB)

>>>Youth Justice Legal Centre (PDF 113KB)

>>>Youth Justice Boards (PDF 139KB)

 

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This page was amended on 06/03/24 to clarify that home educated children are not considered to be at a greater risk of going missing or being criminalised than children who are educated in schools.