Commercial sexual exploitation
Commercial sexual exploitation is widespread across the UK. We’re working to end it. Join us.
What’s the problem?
Commercial sexual exploitation is the exchange of money, employment, goods or services in return for sex acts. It is a form of sexual abuse predominantly perpetrated against some of the most vulnerable and marginalised women in society, who face multiple and overlapping forms of disadvantage and discrimination – including poverty, experiences in the care system, insecure immigration status and childhood sexual abuse – all of which also act as barriers to exiting.
Image: Survivor of sexual exploitation, Mia de Faoite, shares her experiences with MPs in Parliament
As a form of violence against women, commercial sexual exploitation can devastate lives, causing severe and long-lasting harm to victims. The mainstreaming and normalisation of the sex trade further undermines the safety and equality of all women and girls.
Commercial sexual exploitation is widespread in the UK, and includes exploitation through prostitution, sex trafficking, pornography, stripping and ‘web camming’.
What’s the solution?
Laws against commercial sexual exploitation in the UK are outdated and unjust. Urgent legal reforms are needed to deter demand for sexual exploitation, hold perpetrators and profiteers to account, and ensure victims receive support and justice.
What is UK Feminista doing?
We undertake research, formulate policy and lead public policy advocacy on the most effective approaches to combatting sexual exploitation. Central to our approach is supporting survivors and frontline services to share their experiences and insights with policy makers.
“It is meaningful to sit in a space like this and to know that the experiences many of us carried in silence for so long are now part of the conversation.”
Alia Azariah – Survivor Leader – speaking at a meeting of the APPG on Commercial Sexual Exploitation
All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Commercial Sexual Exploitation
UK Feminista provides the Secretariat for the APPG on Commercial Sexual Exploitation – which brings together over 30 MPs and peers from different parties to lead action in Parliament against commercial sexual exploitation. Read the APPG’s annual report.
Visit the APPG website and follow the APPG on X, LinkedIn and Bluesky
Scotland
UK Feminista provides the Secretariat for A Model For Scotland – a survivor-led alliance of frontline services and organisations calling for legal reform in Scotland to combat commercial sexual exploitation.
Visit A Model For Scotland’s website and follow A Model For Scotland on X
UK Feminista also provided the Secretariat for the groundbreaking inquiry into online pimping conducted by the Scottish Parliament’s Cross-Party Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation.
“When the people paying are famous, in government, royal, civil servants or have diplomatic immunity, you don’t have any confidence that you’ll be believed or protected if you report violence or rape.
We need a model for Scotland that ensures victims are identified and supported, and where the burden of criminality is shifted off victims and on to pimps, punters and pimping websites.”
Diane Martin CBE – Survivor, Policy Expert and Chair of A Model For Scotland
Key publications
- “Consent cannot be purchased” | Building on France and Ireland’s experiences of tackling commercial sexual exploitation, 2025
- “Close This Market” | Report on tackling the sexual exploitation of Romanian women by men in the UK, 2020
- Pornography regulation: The case for Parliamentary reform | All-Party Parliamentary Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, 2023
- Bust the Business Model: How to stop sex trafficking and sexual exploitation in the UK | All-Party Parliamentary Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, 2021
- Online Pimping: Organised sexual exploitation in England and Wales | Cross-Party Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, 2021
- Behind Closed Doors: Organised sexual exploitation in England and Wales | All-Party Parliamentary Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, 2018
How to support our work
Become a monthly donor!
We rely on generous donations from supporters to fight against commercial sexual exploitation. Please consider becoming a monthly donor to support this work.
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