Gamechanger

Children criminalised by drug trade, says ex-addict: Vulnerable children and young people are being groomed into the drug trade and criminalised, an ex-heroin addict jailed as a teenager has said. Vinnie Condron, 47, from Cardiff, said he started taking drugs aged 11 and ended up being the "slave" of a drugs gang. It comes as a Senedd committee finds criminals are targeting children in care, those with learning disabilities or neurodivergence and those excluded from school. The Welsh government said it would work with the UK government and other partners to prevent the exploitation of children. https://lnkd.in/eu-sRMnX

New exploitation hub builds 'team around a child': A new Child Exploitation (CE) Hub that opened earlier this year is aiming to better protect children vulnerable to criminal or sexual abuse. Two reports by the Northamptonshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (NSCP) in October concluded that signs children were being sexually abused were missed, with one of the cases eventually resulting in a conviction for rape. https://lnkd.in/egKF3ygj

We are Children & Young People Now Award Winners 2024! Gamechanger won The Digital Innovation Award The night of Thursday 28th November 2024 proved to be both a memorable and successful one for the Gamechanger team who attended the prestigious Children and Young People Now Awards at a ceremony in Hammersmith, London. Gamechanger uses interactive resources and experiences to raise awareness of major social issues for children and young people. It combines virtual reality technology with engaging drama and activity-based workshops focusing on themes such as county lines drug trafficking and knife crime. Around 3,000 children and young people have participated in the programmes, including those with adverse childhood experiences in mainstream education and pupil referral units. See more about Gamechanger here - https://lnkd.in/dAmHRbQT

What are the signs of involvement in 'County Lines'? - A person meeting unfamiliar adults or a change to their behaviour. - The use of drugs and alcohol. - Unexplained bus or train tickets. - Acquiring money or expensive gifts they can’t account for. - Lone children from outside of the area. - Individuals with multiple mobile phones, tablets or SIM cards. - Use of unusual terms - e.g. "going country". - Young people with more money, expensive clothing than they can account for. - Unknown or suspicious-looking characters coming and going from a neighbour’s. - Relationships with controlling or older individuals, or associations with gangs. - Suspicion of self-harm, physical assault, malnutrition or unexplained injuries. - A child or young person going missing from school or home, or significant changes in emotional well-being.

Man jailed for county line drug dealing and firearm offences in East Sussex: Sussex Police have said that following a joint investigation by Brighton’s Community Investigation Team and the Metropolitan Police, it was found that Jahzadd Ryan was running and controlling a drug line, named ‘Major’. A spokesperson for the police added: “The line had been actively selling crack cocaine and heroin in Brighton and was linked to Ryan’s phone. And......finally we see a sentence that can act as a deterrent: “When appearing before Lewes Crown Court on November 25, Ryan, 25, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 14 years and eight months’ imprisonment.” 👏 👏 👏 https://lnkd.in/ekcWQ5tj

We couldn't agree more 👏

We are Children & Young People Now Award Winners 2024! After winning the award, Gamechanger MD, Jessica Wright said:    “Gamechanger is an outstanding collaborative partnership originally formed with the objective of using technological innovation to reduce the risks of CCE involvement for young people. Five years after initial discussions, we have an incredible piece of integrated VR, and are developing blended learning programmes for many other social issues affecting young people, including – but not limited to – Knife Crime, Child Sexual Exploitation, Online Safety and Bullying, Anti-social Behaviour and Violence Against Women and Girls. Winning this award was a huge endorsement of all the hard work that has gone into this project”

The Children and Young People Now Awards 2024 The Digital Innovation Award Winners: Gamechanger The night of Thursday 28th November 2024 proved to be both a memorable and successful one for the Gamechanger team who attended the prestigious Children and Young People Now Awards at a ceremony in Hammersmith, London. We were delighted to have been shortlisted in both the Digital Innovation and Safeguarding categories for our ground-breaking blended learning programmes delivered for schools and youth services across the UK. Gamechanger uses interactive resources and experiences to raise awareness of major social issues for children and young people. It combines virtual reality technology with engaging drama and activity-based workshops focusing on themes such as county lines drug trafficking and knife crime. Around 3,000 children and young people have participated in the programmes, including those with adverse childhood experiences in mainstream education and pupil referral units. Finalists: • Achieve Psychology for Learning, Total Words • The Lucy Faithfull Foundation, Shore • University of Cambridge, Isaac Physics & STEM SMART

Gamechanger WIN The Digital Innovation Award At The Children & Young People Now Awards 2024! Now in their 19th year, the awards showcase innovation and outstanding practice across the children’s services sector. They also provide an all-too-rare opportunity to champion the vital work of services supporting children, young people and families across the UK. Sponsored by Amity, Cafcass, Foster Support and the National Youth Agency, this year’s awards received over 500 entries with 116 shortlisted schemes for the 24 award categories covering every aspect of the sector.   Gamechanger were thrilled to win The Digital Innovation Award after being shortlisted for the award alongside three other highly reputable services. 🏆 #cypnow2024 #gamechanger #winners #digitalinnovationaward #london #innovation #childrensservices https://lnkd.in/dtg4gBhd

Call for parents in North West to watch out for signs children are being exploited by criminal gangs: Police forces are calling on parents to watch out for signs their children are being exploited by criminal gangs.County lines gangs use children and young people to traffic drugs from big cities like Liverpool and Manchester to smaller towns across the country. The Eyes Open campaign aims to educate young people, as well as their parents or carers, about the deceptive tactics that county lines gangs use. County lines are the networks that these gangs use to distribute drugs from cities to smaller towns and rural areas. https://lnkd.in/eC9tf-uZ