To ask the First Minister and deputy First Minister for an update on the work they have undertaken since taking office to protect children from exploitation by paramilitary and criminal gangs.

Through the Executive Office we have a number of initiatives which are working to protect children and young people from exploitation by paramilitary and criminal gangs.

The Planned Interventions Programme (PIP) funds community activity to provide positive alternatives for young people at risk of becoming involved in anti-social behaviour, sectarianism, and recruitment from paramilitary gangs, and to address heightened inter and intra community tension around interfaces, or anywhere there is a potential for community tensions to arise. The Programme is delivered annually under wider commitments of the Executive’s ‘Together: Building a United Community (T: BUC)’ Strategy.

During 2023/24 70 projects were awarded a total of £400k under the PIP, five of the applications awarded were from the South Belfast constituency and received a total of £29,614.18. The call for applications for 2024/25 opened on 8 March 2024 and closes on 10 April 2024.

The Communities in Transition project, which is part of the overall Tackling Paramilitary Activity, Criminality and Organised Crime Programme, is also delivering projects which protect children and young people from exploitation by paramilitary and criminal gangs. The project is currently delivering across the following eight areas:

Carrickfergus and Larne (Antiville and Kilwaughter in Larne together with Northland and Castlemara in Carrickfergus)

Derry/Londonderry (Brandywell and Creggan)

North Down (Kilcooley & Rathgill)

Lurgan/Craigavon (Drumgask and Kilwilkie)

West Belfast (Lower Falls, Twinbrook, Poleglass, Upper Springfield, Turf Lodge and Ballymurphy)

North Belfast (New Lodge and Greater Ardoyne)

Shankill (upper and lower, including Woodvale), and

East Belfast (The Mount and Ballymacarrett).

To date CIT has delivered a total of 82 projects with a value of £19 million across the eight Communities in Transition areas. 51 of these projects have been completed, with plans to extend delivery of the remaining 31 contracts into 2024/25.

At a recent CIT Showcase event discussion focussed on the following issues:

The Impact of Paramilitarism on Health and Wellbeing

Vulnerability to Exploitation: monetary, sexual, and child criminal (CSE/CCE)

Vulnerable Youth: lack of aspirations, education, and positive choices, and

The impact of paramilitarism on the physical landscape.

The issue of child exploitation however is not new to CIT and there is a range of projects already in existence which are working to protect children from exploitation by paramilitary and criminal gangs. Some examples are as follows.

In North Belfast CIT supported the ‘Youth Realities on Stage’ project highlighting the dangers of exploitation and how to make positive life choices. There is also the ‘Youth Empowerment’ project working with disadvantaged youth (14-17 years) who are at risk of exploitation, supporting them to channel their energy and passion into something positive.

In Lurgan CIT has supported the roll out of the ‘Pressure Project’, which educates young people on the dangers of exploitation and recruitment into paramilitarism and criminality.

In West Belfast the CIT delivery partners organised a learning visit to the Sunrise Complex Safeguarding team in Rochdale and invited them to a reciprocal conference in West Belfast focusing on CCE and CSE. CIT has also funded a ‘Taking and Maintaining Control’ programme in West Belfast for young girls around consent and empowerment.

Across East Belfast, North Down and Carrickfergus and Larne CIT areas partners are delivering a ‘Raising Aspirations Project’ across a number of local primary and post-primary schools, supporting young people in making positive life choices.

Finally, our officials are also working closely with other statutory partners with lead responsibility for child criminal and sexual exploitation.