Agenda Alliance responds to BBC’s ‘Britain’s Forgotten Girls’

Our Chief Executive, Indy Cross, responds to the BBC Two documentary 'Britain's Forgotten Girls', an investigative documentary broadcast by the BBC exploring the grooming of girls and young women by groups of men selling drugs across Britain.

Like so many across the country, I recently sat down to watch ‘Britain’s Forgotten Girls’, a documentary that provides a deep-dive into the stories of four young women who were groomed, exploited and sexually abused as children, by groups of men selling drugs in London, Coventry, and Manchester.

Last year, we were approached by the BBC to provide background information for the documentary, and we were able to support the research and development phase of the film. Through our work on young women in contact with the criminal justice system, girls at risk of school exclusion, and young women and girls affected by violence and exploitation, we know the scale of the problem – and as the documentary makes abjectly clear, we know that the systems and services that are supposed to be in place to protect women and girls are not only failing in their duty, but are exacerbating women’s trauma. I was really pleased to see Agenda Alliance’s member and key partner, Centre for Young Lives, platformed in the documentary, speaking truth to power about how girls are so consistently overlooked in conversations around county lines and organised drug gangs.

Despite our deep knowledge and understanding of the issues that girls and young women face – both in terms of their experiences of violence and exploitation, and the recurrent failure of the police and social services to support them – the documentary was still an utterly harrowing watch. I commend the incredible amount of bravery and determination that Christine, Annie, Holly and Violet had in sharing what they went through with a national audience. They are raising awareness and encouraging action to address the horrors that women and girls are facing at a mass-scale, all over the country.

I want to extend solidarity and support to every woman and girl who has experienced violence, exploitation, abuse, and trauma, and who has been let down by the systems and services that were meant to support them. We exist to make things better for you. We will continue to work hard to reform the health, social care, criminal justice and education systems; to embed women and girls at the heart of decision-making that affects them; and to support the incredible voluntary sector working with women and girls at the sharpest edge of marginalisation, who provide so much care and intervention where statutory services fail.

This documentary has laid bare the catastrophic consequences of systems and services not information-sharing or collaborating and not operating with women and girls at the centre of their practice. Underneath the headlines, statistics, policy papers and reviews are real women and girls who are experiencing serious harm. It’s our mission to ensure all women and girls can lead lives free from that harm and are empowered to design the systems and services that are in place to support them.

We see you. We hear you.

In solidarity,

Indy