A 32-strong group of fundraisers abseiled 80ft off Miller’s Dale Bridge in the Peak District to raise money for the local charity that supports children and young people in Derbyshire who are victims or at risk of child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation and County Lines.
Fundraisers included representatives from Dains accountants, Threeguru marketing agency, University of Derby and Derby City Council as well as Safe and Sound ambassadors, BAFTA-winning actor Molly Windsor and child exploitation survivor Louise Murphy-Fairclough (18) who has been supported by the charity.
Safe and Sound chief executive Tracy Harrison took part in the abseil group dressed, appropriately, as Spiderman.
She said: “February 29 only comes around once every four years so we wanted to make this a day to remember for all of our brave supporters as well as raising a lot of money for the charity.
“We have raised more than £10,000 so far with more sponsorship coming and this will all go towards our Butterfly Appeal which will help us expand the work we do to support young people and their families and to raise public awareness of child exploitation.”
She continued: “It was a terrifying experience to step backwards off the bridge but once you got going it was an amazing and exhilarating experience and the trainers from Abseil Derbyshire were so encouraging.”
For more information about child exploitation and how to support Safe and Sound’s work, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk and follow on Facebook and Twitter @safeandsoundgroup or email [email protected]
Ends
Media enquiries: Sarah Jenkin-Jones, JJPR, Tel: 01332 515102/07951 945665; [email protected]
About Safe and Sound and the Butterfly Appeal
Safe and Sound was launched in 2002 and is the only local charity that is totally focused on transforming the lives of thousands of children and young people who are victims or are at risk of child sexual exploitation across Derbyshire.
Safe and Sound’s expertise came to the fore during the 2010 landmark case – Operation Retriever – which was Derby’s first prosecution for child sexual exploitation and abuse. The charity’s specialist team supported every young person affected by the criminal actions of 13 defendants who were jailed in total for up to 22 years for 70 offences.
Safe and Sound’s specialist team provides individual support for children and young people from as young as eight up to the age of 18. They also raise awareness of the issue and the dangers facing children and young people through awareness programmes for schools, organisations, businesses and community groups.
Safe and Sound has launched the Butterfly Appeal #Buildingstrongwings to bring to fruition its vision for expanded services to support young people, families and wider community.
The charity’s future vision is extensive and includes:
– A new outreach programme to provide hands-on support where young people are at their most vulnerable
– Wider support for the families of victims and those at risk of CSE
– Youth work programmes with new activities from music to sport to build young people’s confidence and resilience
– Specialist psychological therapy programmes to tackle trauma, anxiety and depression
– Longer term support for survivors moving into adulthood enabling them to mentor younger victims
– An expanded community education programme to increase public awareness of CSE and the dangers facing young people
Supporters and ambassadors include the Chief Constable of Derbyshire who has chosen Safe and Sound as one of his chosen charities.
For more information about child sexual exploitation, Safe and Sound Derby and the Butterfly Appeal please visitwww.safeandsoundgroup.co.uk and follow on social media. A powerful video outlining young people’s experiences and why local people and businesses should support Safe and Sound is online at https://youtu.be/xjcb1y2cfGE
About CSE
In the UK today, one in 20 children suffer sexual abuse which includes child sexual exploitation. That means that in every classroom in Derbyshire, there is at least one vulnerable young person in need of help.
Child Sexual Exploitation (commonly referred to as CSE) is a form of child sexual abuse and takes many different forms from rape and sexual assault to online grooming and encouraging children to share inappropriate images of themselves.
CSE is a particularly manipulative form of abuse and is also linked to wider child exploitation issues such as County Lines, gangs, trafficking and modern slavery.
The key factor is that individuals or groups take advantage of young people by manipulating or deceiving them into sexual activity in exchange for something the victim needs or wants. This could range from money and alcohol to less tangible things such as the attention that they crave at a vulnerable time in their lives.