Crime and Policing Bill
1. New offence of forcing people to hide objects in their bodies
A new criminal offence of ‘coerced internal concealment’, to be introduced as an amendment to the landmark Crime and Policing Bill, will crack down on anyone, including gang leaders who force people to hide items inside their bodies to avoid detection.

This practice, also known by the street names ‘plugging’, ‘stuffing’ and ‘banking’, is typically used by organised gangs to transport items like drugs, money and SIM cards from one location to another.
It relies on forcing or deceiving children and vulnerable adults into ingesting or hiding items inside their bodily cavities and is often linked to county lines drug running.

Internal concealment is an extremely dangerous practice. It can be fatal if drug packages break open inside the body and can cause significant physical and psychological harm to those forced to do it.
Where senior gang figures are found to have coerced other individuals to ingest or carry specified items inside their bodies, they will face up to 10 years behind bars.

The latest statistics from the County Lines Programme show, that since July 2024, law enforcement activity resulted in over 1,200-line closures and 2,000 arrests – including the arrest and subsequent charging of over 800 violent offenders controlling the lines.

There were also more than 2,100 safeguarding referrals for children and vulnerable people.
The programme also provides specialist support for children and young people to escape the drugs trade.
Over 320 children and young people received dedicated specialist support during this period, which can include one-to-one casework for young people and their families to help prevent exploitation or support their safe exit.

The criminalisation of ‘coerced internal concealment’ will ensure that victims are properly recognised and receive the support they need.
It also sends a clear message to offenders that the punishment for this crime will match the impact of the harm they have caused.

The new offence will join a package of other measures in the government’s Crime and Policing Bill designed to protect children and vulnerable adults, including a specific offence of child criminal exploitation aimed at the ringleaders behind county lines operations.

2. Emergency workers will be better protected from violence and abuse when visiting homes as the government introduces new laws to support frontline staff.
The new measures as amendments to the government’s landmark Crime and Policing Bill will close an existing loophole that allows people to get away with racial and religious abuse towards police, fire and ambulance workers making house calls.

Currently, it is illegal to racially or religiously abuse anyone in public, but this does not extend to behaviour within a private home.

The gap was originally designed to ensure that the laws that allow police to keep public spaces free from serious disorder did not overstep into private conversations held in homes.

By stopping short of people’s houses, the law has left emergency workers vulnerable and unprotected to racial and religious-based abuse and harassment during house calls, and unable to hold the perpetrators to account for their behaviour.

Reports of emergency workers being abused for their race or religion while in private homes have increased, and the government thinks it is vital they get the protections they deserve as they carry out their vital work to resolve home disputes and provide health care.

By closing the loophole in the Public Order Act 1986, the government is making clear that racially or religiously motivated abuse and threats towards our emergency workers will never be tolerated, regardless of where it takes place.

Under the change, offenders of abusing emergency workers in any setting could face a maximum sentence of 2 years imprisonment.

Other key issues addressed by the Crime and Policing Bill include greater protections for children, women, and vulnerable adults:

• those who are survivors of domestic abuse.
• those needing protection from stalking and harassment.
• child criminal exploitation and creating a new regime for child criminal exploitation, civil preventative orders to prevent exploitative conduct committed by adults against children from occurring or re-occurring.

and further new laws to tackle:

• the practice known as ‘cuckooing’ (home takeover), whereby criminals take control over the home of another person to use it for criminal activity.
• spiking (slang for someone putting alcohol or drugs into another person’s drink or body) and making it a standalone offence
• the taking of intimate images without consent and the installation of equipment with intent to enable the taking of intimate images without consent.

New Legislation
Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 received Royal Assent, unleashing the power of data into the British society and economy.
The Act aims to stimulate economic growth by facilitating secure and effective data sharing across various sectors. It is projected to bring an estimated £10 billion boost to the UK economy over ten years. The Bill's measures are designed to support three of the government's five key missions: kickstarting economic growth, improving public services, and making people's lives easier.

For more information read the factsheet Data (Use and Access) Bill factsheet: growing the economy.

New Guidance
Essential guidance on AI generated child sexual abuse material launched Friday 27 June 2025
A new guide warns about a rise in the abuse of AI to create nude and sexual imagery of children has been issued to professionals working with children and young people to help them address the evolving threat.

The guide, Child sexual abuse imagery generated by artificial intelligence: An essential guide for professionals who work with children and young people, will equip education practitioners and all those who support children and young people in the UK, such as social workers, youth football clubs, Scout and Guide groups and summer holiday clubs, with essential clarity and information they need to appropriately respond to incidents involving AI-generated child sexual abuse material.

The new guide makes it clear AI child sexual abuse imagery “should be treated with the same level of care, urgency and safeguarding response as any other incidence involving child sexual abuse material” and aims to dispel any misconception that AI imagery causes less harm than real photographs or videos. It was issued to a network of 38,000 professionals and partners working with children in the UK to raise awareness of the issue and provide information and guidance.

The guide also provides professionals with a step-by-step response for dealing with incidents relating to AI-generated child sexual imagery, such as how best to handle any illegal material and ensuring that victims are given the appropriate support they need.

Tailored versions of the guidance have been created for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and will be distributed across the UK, as well as hosted on the Internet Watch Foundation and the National Crime Agency and CEOP websites.

1. Birmingham Safeguarding Children Partnership publishes Independent Practice Review, Child Safeguarding Practice Review: Child A BSCP 2022-23/04
Introduction and background to the review:
This Rapid Review was triggered following information being provided to Birmingham Children’s Trust by Somerset Children’s Social Care in December 2022. This information highlighted that while Somerset Children’s Social Care were taking legal action to remove a three-month old child from parental care, the child’s parents disclosed that an older child of theirs had died around January 2020 whilst they were living in the Birmingham area, and that they had buried the child’s body in the garden of the property.

There are 4 key learning points:

• The critical role of assessment:
• The importance of relationship-based practice
• Remaining child focused throughout
• Enhancing access to universal services:

2. Baroness Casey's audit of group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse
This report documents the findings covering:

• what can be learnt about the scale, nature and characteristics of group-based CSEA
• consideration of drivers of this type of offending, including the role of ethnicity and culture
• the response to group-based CSEA at local and national level

The report sets out a number of recommendations to address issues identified in the audit and there is also an Oral statement to Parliament by the Home secretary.

Charity Commission
1. Regulator issues Official Warning to charity and disqualifies trustee over inflammatory social media activity
The Commission has also issued an Order disqualifying one of the charity’s trustees from being a trustee and from holding a position with senior management functions, for a period of eight years. The Palestinian Refugee Project was registered in 2021, with objects to benefit the Palestinian diaspora in refugee camps through poverty relief, advancing education, relieving sickness and providing social welfare and leisure facilities.

The Charity Commission, the regulator of charities in England and Wales, began examining the charity in December 2023, after concerns were raised about its social media activity. The regulator also identified that all of the charity’s then trustees appeared to be related, with one serving as CEO, giving rise to concerns about potential conflicts of interest.

The trustees’ responses to the Commission’s questions raised further concerns, for example, that they lacked an understanding of their legal duties and responsibilities, including the importance of trustees acting and making decisions collectively.

The Commission has disqualified Mrs Al-Mawed-Layton for eight years due to her role in mismanagement and / or misconduct of the charity, including social media activity on behalf of the charity. The Order disqualifies Mrs Al-Mawed-Layton from being a trustee and holding a senior management position in any charity.

As part of its case, the regulator also established that a failure to implement financial controls meant that funds were spent without proper authorisation or controls. The charity is overdue in filing its accounts for the years ending April 2023 and 2024.
The Charity Commission’s case involving the charity will remain ongoing allowing the regulator to follow up on the remedial actions set out in the Official Warning. 

Ofsted
2. Insight from Ofsted’s investigations of unregistered schools
As part of a review Ofsted plans to publish short commentaries that explore different aspects of our published data on unregistered schools investigations.
The statistics show the latest published data as at 31 March 2025 from our Unregistered schools management information - GOV.UK.

It is a criminal offence to run an independent school in England that is not registered with the Department for Education (DfE) Children attending unregistered schools are at risk because there is no formal external oversight of safeguarding, health and safety, or the quality of education. In January 2016, Ofsted set up an unregistered schools team, funded by the DfE, to investigate settings that are suspected of operating as unregistered schools.

1. Enforcing the Online Safety Act: Ofcom opens nine new investigations
Ofcom has launched investigations into whether seven file-sharing services, 4chan and porn provider First Time Videos have failed to comply with their duties under the UK’s Online Safety Act.

New investigations
Ofcom have today opened formal investigations into online discussion board 4chan and seven file-sharing services – Im.ge, Krakenfiles, Nippybox, Nippydrive, Nippyshare, Nippyspace and Yolobit – having not received responses to our statutory information requests, to which services are legally required to respond.

Ofcom have received complaints about the potential for illegal content and activity on 4chan, and possible sharing of child sexual abuse material on the file-sharing services.

Specifically, they are investigating whether the providers of these services have failed to:

• put appropriate safety measures in place to protect UK users from illegal content and activity;
• complete – and keep a record of – a suitable and sufficient illegal harms risk assessment; and
• respond to a statutory information request.

Ofcom have also today launched an investigation into whether First Time Videos LLC, which provides the pornographic services FTVGirls.com and FTVMilfs.com, has highly effective age assurance in place to protect children from pornography.

Ofcom will now gather and analyse evidence to determine whether any contraventions have occurred. If our assessment indicates compliance failures, we will issue provisional notices of contravention to providers, who can then make representations on our findings, before we make our final decisions.

They will provide updates on these investigations as soon as possible.

Remember:

• Wherever in the world a service is based, if it hasli lnks to the UK’, The Online Safety Act now has duties to protect UK users. This can mean having a significant number of UK users, if the UK is a target market, or if a service is capable of being used by people in the UK andposes a material risk of significant harm to them.
• From the end of July, user-to-user and search services must start implementing appropriate safety measures to protect children from certain types of harmful material, including pornography and content that promotes suicide, self-harm, eating disorders or dangerous challenges.
• UK law sets out the process Ofcom must follow when investigating a provider and deciding whether it has failed to comply with its legal obligations. Ofcom’s Online Safety Enforcement Guidance can be found here.

2. UK’s major porn providers agree to age checks from next month
Source: Ofcom published on this website Friday 27 June 2025
Children in the UK will gain increased protection from online pornography next month, Ofcom has announced, as major providers agree to bring in robust methods to check users’ age for the first time.

By 25 July, all sites and apps that allow pornography – whether they are dedicated adult sites or social media, search or gaming services – must use highly effective age checks to ensure children are not normally able to encounter it. Online firms who publish their own pornography are already required to protect children from it, and thousands of sites have already introduced robust age checks in response.

Survivors of rape and serious sexual assault given the right to have dropped cases reviewed
Victims of rape and serious sexual assaults who face their cases being dropped by prosecutors will, for the first time, be given the right to have their case reviewed by a different prosecutor before any final decisions are made.

Criminal cases can be stopped at any point if a prosecutor decides there is no longer a realistic prospect of conviction. Under the pilot which launched in the West Midlands, survivors of rape or serious sexual abuse will be offered the right to request a review by a different prosecutor before their case is dropped. If that prosecutor determines there is enough evidence, the case will continue.

1. Don’t get hooked: new warning urges the public to continue reporting phishy emails and texts with 41 million already reported
As of April 2025, the total number of phishing scams reported to the Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS) reached over 41 million since its launch in April 2020. This has resulted in 217,000 scams being removed from across 393,395 websites pages by the National Cyber Security Centre.

Insight revealed by Action Fraud shows the top industries impersonated in reported phishing emails were streaming services, tech and telecommunication companies, with some posing as various UK government schemes.
Action Fraud, the national fraud and cyber crime reporting service, launched a phishing awareness campaign to urge the public to beware of phishing scams and report all emails and messages if they look suspicious.
Spam calls and suspicious text messages can be reported too. By using 7726, a free service offered by mobile network providers, customers can forward suspicious text messages, which helps the removal of scam websites and allows networks to block users sending scam text messages. Between April 2020 and April 2025, more than 27,000 scams were removed as a result of being reported using 7726.

What is phishing?
'Phishing', ‘quishing’ or ‘smishing’ is when criminals use fake emails, text messages, QR codes, or phone calls to trick victims.
The goal of a phishing message is to encourage the victim to click a malicious link, or scan a fraudulent QR code, which usually leads them to a genuine-looking website, designed to make victims part way with their financial and/or personal information. Criminals will use well-known brands or organisations the victim already has a connection with, like a bank or tradesperson, to make fake emails seem genuine and more convincing.

How can you protect yourself?
If you’ve received an email that doesn’t feel right, STOP! 

• break the contact – don’t reply, click on any links, call any phone numbers or make any payments 
• check if it’s genuine: contact the organisation directly using an email address or phone number you know is correct, e.g. from your utility bills, via a search engine, on the back of your card or by calling 159 for banks 
• before you delete the email, forward it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

If you’ve received a text message that doesn’t feel right, STOP! 

• break the contact – don’t reply, click on any links, call any phone numbers or make any payments 
• check if it’s genuine: contact the organisation directly using an email address or phone number you know is correct, e.g. from your utility bills, via a search engine, on the back of your card or by calling 159 for banks 
• forward the message for free to 7726 
  If you’ve received a call that doesn’t feel right, STOP! 
• hang up 
• check if it’s genuine: contact the organisation directly using contact details you know are correct, such as those on a utility bill, official website, the back of your card or by calling 159 for your bank 
• don’t trust the Caller ID display on your phone – it’s not proof of ID 
• report it by sending a text to 7726 with the word ‘call’ followed by the scam caller’s number 

For more advice on how to protect yourself from fraud: https://stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk/
If you’ve lost money or provided financial information as a result of a phishing scam, notify your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.

2. The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) concerned over funeral scams targeting grieving families

CTSI is warning the public about a disturbing scam where criminals exploit the grief of bereaved families by impersonating them online and charging mourners to attend funerals that should be free.

Fraudsters are scanning publicly available funeral notices and creating fake Facebook profiles posing as family members or friends of the deceased. They then contact mourners with bogus links to funeral livestreams – demanding payment – or set up fake donation pages. These scams are not only deceitful but dangerous, with victims often handing over personal information or falling prey to push payment fraud (APP fraud) afterwards.

Online funerals became common during the COVID-19 pandemic and remain popular today as they allow friends and relatives who can’t attend in person to pay their respects. This ongoing practice has become a new target for online scammers.

CTSI’s advice to the public is clear:

• ⁠⁠You should never be charged to attend a funeral, whether in person or via livestream.
• ⁠⁠Only donate through official, verified sources – check with the named funeral director or celebrant if unsure.
• ⁠⁠Never share personal or banking information in response to unsolicited messages.
• ⁠⁠Be cautious of friend requests or messages from unfamiliar profiles, even if they appear to be mutual friends.
• ⁠⁠If you’ve shared bank details, contact your bank immediately.

If you or someone you know has been affected, please contact one of the following:
England & Wales: Action Fraud – www.actionfraud.police.uk
Scotland: Advice Direct Scotland – 0808 164 6000
Northern Ireland: Consumerline – 0300 123 6262
Consumer advice: Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline – 0808 223 1133

3. New quishing alert: £3.5 million lost last year to fraudulent QR codes
A further alert has also been issued by Action Fraud, about quishing, see above, where a fraudulent QR code is scanned, designed to steal personal and financial information. The warning encourages people to stay vigilant and double check QR codes to see if they are malicious, or have been tampered with, before scanning them online or in public spaces.

Action Fraud can reveal that quishing happens most frequently in car parks, with criminals using stickers to tamper with QR codes on parking machines. Quishing also occurred on online shopping platforms, where sellers received a QR code via email to either verify accounts or to receive payment for sold items.

Reports also showed phishing attacks were taking place impersonating HMRC, or other UK government schemes, targeting people with QR codes designed to steal personal and financial details.

What can you do avoid being a victim of quishing?

• QR codes used in pubs or restaurants are usually safe to scan.
• Scanning QR codes in open spaces (like stations and car parks) might pose a greater risk. Check for signs that codes may have been tampered with (usually by a sticker placed over the legitimate QR code). If in doubt, do not scan them: use a search engine to find the official website or app for the organisation you need to make a payment to.
• If you receive an email with a QR code in it, and you're asked to scan it, you should be cautious due to an increase in these types of 'quishing' attacks.
• Finally, we recommend that you use the QR-scanner that comes with your phone, rather than using an app downloaded from an app store.

If you receive a suspicious email, report it by forwarding it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Find out how to protect yourself from fraud: https://stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk
If you’ve been a victim of fraud, report it at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040.

In Scotland, contact Police Scotland on 101.

1. Appliance servicing company which used high pressure sales tactics on elderly and vulnerable is shut down
A company which used high pressure sales tactics to sell service plans for household appliances has been shut down after an Insolvency Service investigation found it targeted the elderly and vulnerable. UK Service Plan Ltd, registered at Princess Street in Manchester and formerly Trafalgar Place, Brighton, offered protection plans for white goods to cover the cost of callouts, replacement parts and labour. The company charged around £29 a month for a service plan, and some people were persuaded to take on lengthy agreements of up to three and five years.

Additionally, the company pressured people – some via cold calls – into buying plans by offering a discount which they falsely claimed was only applicable if they pay on the day. The Insolvency Service looked at 14 complaints which had been received from UK Service Plan Ltd customers, all of whom were over the age of 71.

All enquiries concerning the affairs of the company should be made to the Official Receiver of Public Interest Unit: PO Box 16664, Birmingham, B2 2JQ. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

2. Seven men convicted for sexually exploiting children in Rochdale
Seven men have been convicted for their role in the systematic abuse of vulnerable children in Rochdale.
They were found guilty following a trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court of sexually abusing two girls in Rochdale between 2001 and 2006. The abuse started when each of the girls were aged just 13. Both were from vulnerable backgrounds and were known to social services. One victim was living in the care system during the offending period. They were groomed with gifts and money and often plied with alcohol or drugs before being attacked.

After reviewing the evidence presented by the prosecution – including victims’ video-recorded interviews, corroborating details like vehicle identifications, employment records, and links between the defendants – the jury found the defendants guilty.

3. Former religious teacher convicted of sexual offences
A 70-year-old man who abused his position as an Islamic teacher in Ipswich, has been convicted of numerous non-recent sexual assaults.
Hafez Ashraf Uddin, of Wivenhoe Road, Barking in London, was found guilty of 13 counts of indecent assault at Ipswich Crown Court yesterday, Thursday 5 June, following a trial lasting almost four weeks. The offences relate to six separate victims – who were all girls aged between seven and 14-years-old – and occurred between 1985 and 1999.

He has been remanded in custody pending a sentencing hearing to be held at Ipswich Crown Court on Monday 28 July.
Suffolk Police recognises the impact that this case will have on the community that Uddin served and officers have been liaising with partners to ensure anyone with concerns can access advice and specialist support.

Any further reports can be made to the South Safeguarding Investigation Unit via 101, quoting Operation Picton and reference: 37/CJ/667/18.

Alternatively you can make a report via the Suffolk Police website: Report rape, sexual assault and other sexual offences | Suffolk Constabulary

Support for victims in Suffolk is available via the following organisations:

• The Ferns Independent Sexual Violence Advisor Service: The Ferns Centre
• Survivors in Transition: SiT Overview | Survivors In Transition

4. Former nursery worker convicted of child cruelty offences
A 22-year-old nursery worker has been found guilty of 21 counts of child cruelty after she abused multiple children in her care.
Roksana Helena Lecka, 22 of Avro Place, Hounslow appeared at Kingston Crown Court on Monday, 16 June, where following a six-week-trial was found guilty of 21 counts of child cruelty.

She was brought to justice after a Met investigation found Lecka had abused children as young as ten months at two separate nurseries in Twickenham and Hounslow between October 2023 and June 2024.
Following an initial appearance in court, this indictment was amended to 24 counts of child cruelty against 24 separate children.

Lecka was convicted on Monday, 16 June of 21 counts of child cruelty. The jury found her not guilty on three counts. She will appear at Kingston Crown Court on Friday, 26 September for sentencing.

Criminal who laundered money for romance scammers jailed
A man who laundered more than a million pounds gained from a sophisticated romance fraud operation that devastated vulnerable victims has been jailed. Ahmed Ali Suleman, 63, was prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) following an investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Between January 2015 and November 2017, the defendant exploited his position within the textile industry to launder money for international fraudsters.

He was found guilty of entering into a money laundering arrangement and false accounting following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court on 24 April 2025. On Monday 23 June, he was sentenced to four years and three months' imprisonment.