Taxi drivers across Dudley borough have pledged their support in the fight against child sexual exploitation.

More than 1,000 hackney and private hire drivers, licensed by Dudley Council, are pledging to help tackle CSE by being the ‘eyes and ears’ for this horrific crime. Drivers are committed to tackling child sexual exploitation by reporting any concerns helping to make Dudley a safer borough for young people.   

All taxi drivers in the borough complete a CSE awareness session as part of their license conditions, arming them with the knowledge they need to spot the signs of sexual exploitation.

Councils across the West Midlands and the police work jointly to raise awareness of CSE through the regional see me, hear me campaign which highlights this terrible hidden crime. Councillor Richard Body, chairman of Dudley Council’s taxi committee, said:

“This is a really important pledge to help us tackle CSE. By the nature of their work, taxi drivers play a vital role in spotting and reporting suspicious behaviour as they go about their day to day work.  

“The awareness sessions drivers take part in give them the knowledge they need to report any concerns, helping us protect young people in our borough.

“We need everyone to work together to stand up against CSE - every parent, professional and young person should visit seeme-hearme.org.uk and be aware of the warning signs.”

Shaz Saleem chairman of Dudley Private Hire and Taxi Association added:

“Dudley’s Trade Association is proactively involved in helping to raise awareness of child sexual exploitation and getting safety messages out to the public. The pledge shows the drivers’ dedication to tackling this serious crime and protecting young people in our borough.”

There are a number of warning signs people may spot in a child or young person’s behaviour that may indicate something is wrong. 

These include having friends who are older, persistently going missing, secretive relationships with unknown adults, truancy from school, chronic fatigue, constant calls on a mobile phone and the possession of money or new things.

Find out more about CSE by visiting www.seeme-hearme.org.uk. Concerns about young people being sexually exploited should be reported to the police on 101or in an emergency dial 999.