Criminal justice and youth violence
Children, Violence and Vulnerability 2025 — Report 4: Exploitation
Youth Endowment Fund · 2025
About this report
This report, the fourth in YEF's 2025 annual survey series, examines criminal exploitation and 'gang' involvement among 13–17-year-olds across England and Wales. Key findings show that 12% of teenagers were approached to sell, transport or store drugs or weapons in the past year, with around 120,000 going through with it; those who did were 18 times more likely to be victims of serious violence. The report finds significant overlap between exploitation, frequently going missing from home, and 'gang' involvement, with 7.5% of teenagers affected by at least one of these. It also identifies adverse home environments, school exclusion, and risky peer associations as compounding vulnerabilities, while noting that leaving 'gangs' is possible with timely support.
Research details
- Methodology
- Survey
- Sample size
- 10,835
- Sample
- 13–17-year-olds across England and Wales, sampled with quotas by age, gender, ethnicity, region and socioeconomic status to achieve national representativeness.
- Who it's about
- Young people in or leaving the justice system
- Place
- EnglandWales
- Youth involvement
- Young people consulted