Council chiefs in Bolton have given their full support to a new awareness campaign to tackle child sexual exploitation.

Greater Manchester Police and local authorities across the county have today launched ‘It’s Not Okay’ — with a key aim of educating young people so they know they have become victims of abuse.

The campaign follows a week of action across Greater Manchester to tackle child sex exploitation (CSE), which included the detection and disruption of CSE-related activity. Three warrants were executed and 19 arrests made.

High-visibility patrols took place over the Past week, with more than 2,000 children spoken to by specially trained officers.

Those who were identified as being vulnerable were taken to their home or a place of safety.

Deputy leader of Bolton Council, Cllr Linda Thomas, said: “CSE is an issue which Bolton Council and its partners take extremely seriously and this campaign is one of the ways of raising awareness and letting young people know that ‘it’s not okay’.

“Many people will have heard about CSE, but will not know how to recognise the signs or how to report it.

“That’s why we’re supporting this campaign as part of Project Phoenix — it’s not okay. It’s about opening people’s eyes to the signs and educating them about what to say or do in that situation.”

Multi-agency visits were also made to premises across Greater Manchester such as pubs, off licences and takeaways.

The chairman of Bolton Safeguarding Children Board, Mike Tarver, said “This is an ongoing priority for the board.

“We would urge members of the public and parents to share any suspicions they have that a child may be at risk of this serious crime with the relevant authorities.”

Police and crime commissioner Tony Lloyd is also writing to every high school and college in Greater Manchester to make them aware of the campaign and urge them to act if they are worried about a young person.