FIVE of the children in Derby who were considered at risk of being sexually exploited in the last year were also victims of human trafficking.
This figure was revealed at the country's first local human trafficking summit, held in Derby today.
Mandy MacDonald, Derby City Council's child protection manager, told the meeting of more than 150 people that, since April last year, there had been 69 cases of young people in the city who were at risk of child sexual exploitation. Five of them had been trafficked.
Derby Human Trafficking Summit at St Peter's Church was organised by the Bishop of Derby, the Rt Rev Dr Alastair Redfern. He is a member of the Parliamentary Joint Select Committee which drafted the Modern Slavery Bill.
Bishop Alastair said the aim of the summit was to provide a link between charities, councils, police, law practitioners, businesses and the church.
He said: "You can tell from the atmosphere that people are concerned, that they are committed. But, because it's a hidden crime, it's difficult to know what to do and that's what we want people to learn about and contribute to.
"This is the first time we have done anything like this.
"What we learn from these events will help us decide how we operate more generally with charities, faith groups and other organisations."
He said more people needed to be trained in spotting the signs of trafficking, adding: "Whether it's someone who works in the sexual health clinic or someone in the street or the workplace, there are signs, if you look closely, to see people are suffering from this kind of abuse."
The bishop also said there needed to be another point of 24-hour contact for victims other than the police.
"Many of the victims are frightened of the police because they come from countries where police are corrupt," he said. "We need to devise something for our city and county alongside what the police are doing that is more informal and low key but organised.
"We need a 24-7 phone line that is staffed so that, if someone escapes from a brothel in the night and needs help, they can call that number."
The event and heard from the human trafficking units at Derbyshire and the Met police forces, Safe and Sound Derby, Derby City Council and anti-human trafficking organisation Hope for Justice.
