What is Grooming?

 

Extracts from "No Smoke"

 

In response to a West Midlands Police Campaign against child exploitation, I have compiled extracts from the play that cover the issue of grooming children for sexual abuse.  The extracts are taken from scenes between two characters: DS Ellen Cross and journalist Daniel Fletcher.  In the scenes, they are discussing the process in which child abusers will select their victim and groom them with a view to sexually abusing them.

 

It is important to remember that the majority of child abuse happens within families and abusers are predominantly someone the child already knows.  Child Sexual abuse is perpretated far more by the iimmediate family, extended family, and close family friends than it is by professionals or strangers.  However, even if the child already knows and trusts their abuser in their day-to-day life, the abuser stil needs to progress through the stages of grooming in order to develop a new level or status of relationship (or "additional secret relationship") in order to provide a context in which the abuse can occur.  It is for the reason that despite misconceptions of the issue, it is entirely possible for abuse to occur within the home without anyone else knowing.

 

FEEDBACK from the audience who saw the July 2014 production highly praised the detail and accuracy of the information in the play about how abusers groom their victims. This included very positive comments from active and retired police officers and detectives who worked in Child Protection teams on the Police force.

 

Please click the link below to view the PDF file which includes extracts taken from the play.

 

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FILE: "How Abusers Groom Their Victims"