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County lines webinar: protect children from exploitation

Thousands of children across the UK are being groomed and exploited by county lines gangs. Our free webinar gives parents, carers and professionals the tools to stop it.

Thousands of children are being drawn into dangerous criminal networks known as county lines. These criminal gangs use social media, coercion, and manipulation to recruit young people into drug trafficking networks.

Join our free, expert-led county lines webinar on 12 June 2025 and learn how to spot the signs, intervene early, and safeguard children.

Register free today
What county lines is, and why every parent and educator should know about it.

County lines crime is destroying young lives. Yet many parents, carers, teachers and youth workers are unaware of how children are recruited, controlled and exploited by gangs.

This free webinar is your guide to:

  • Understanding what county lines exploitation is
  • Discovering how social media is used to target and groom young people.
  • Recognising the red flags and warning signs
  • Knowing how to respond if you’re concerned about a young person, and where to find help.

Date: 12 June

Time: 12.30 BST

Location: Online (link provided on registration)

A serious-looking young boy sits indoors near a window, speaking to an adult whose face is partially out of frame. Text overlay reads: "At least 27,000 children are believed to be trapped in county lines across the UK." Source: Oral evidence provided by the Children’s Commissioner for England to Parliament. The left side of the image features a bold orange and black graphic design.
Who should attend?

This free, expert-led webinar is designed for:

  • Parents and carers of children aged 10–18
  • Teachers, youth workers, and safeguarding professionals
  • Anyone who wants to keep young people safe from exploitation.
Hear from expert speakers
  • Justine Carter – Director of Strategy at Unseen and a key figure behind the UK’s Modern Slavery Act.
  • Nick Meller – Team Manager, Devon County Council’s Links Team, specialising in safeguarding children and young people outside the home.
  • Yasmin Rasool – Unseen’s Training Manager with a background in supporting young people experiencing, and at risk of, exploitation.
  • Natasha Mitra – Unseen’s Head of Helpline Services, Natasha oversees the Modern Slavery & Exploitation Helpline: a vital service that provides support to potential victims of modern slavery, including county lines exploitation.
Why this webinar matters

Every adult has a role in protecting young people. This county lines webinar will empower you with:

  • Knowledge to identify grooming tactics
  • Confidence to act early
  • Tools to support and safeguard children in your care


Save your spot – register free today.

Can’t attend live? Register anyway and we’ll send you the recording to catch up.

Register free now

Related stories

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Justine Currell

As I came to understand more about the issue, including through a visit to an Unseen safehouse, I knew I needed to do more to stop this abuse and exploitation.

For the last five years of my Civil Service career, I was the Modern Slavery Senior Policy Advisor in the Home Office and led on development of the Modern Slavery Act, including the transparency in supply chains provision and business guidance.

I joined Unseen to lead the development of the Modern Slavery & Exploitation Helpline, and Unseen’s work with businesses. I am regularly called upon to present at national and international conferences and use my experience of working with Ministers to influence other governments internationally to take action to address modern slavery and, in particular, business supply chain issues.

In my spare time I enjoy keeping fit, music, reading and travelling.

Andrew Wallis

What ultimately compelled me to act was a report on how people from Eastern Europe were being trafficked through Bristol airport to the USA. Kate Garbers, who went on to be an Unseen Director, and I wrote to all the city councillors, MPs and the Police Chief Constable challenging them on the issue. The challenge came back to us: this city needs safe housing for trafficked women. And so Unseen began.

But we never wanted Unseen to be just about safe housing. We wanted to end slavery once and for all, and that remains our driving focus.

I chaired the working group for the Centre for Social Justice’s landmark report “It Happens Here: Equipping the United Kingdom to Fight Modern Slavery”. This is now acknowledged as the catalyst behind the UK’s Modern Slavery Act of 2015. It was a great honour to be awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours that year. On the other hand, I’ve also been described as “the loveliest disrupter you could ever hope to meet”.

This job has taken me from building flat-pack furniture for safehouses, to working with businesses to address slavery in supply chains, to delivering training, raising awareness and advising governments around the world.

When not at work, I enjoy travelling, spending time with my dog Harley, cooking, supporting Liverpool and Yorkshire CC, music (I’m a former DJ) and endurance events such as the Three Peaks Challenge and Tribe Freedom Runs – which I vow never to do again. Until the next time.