South West conference focuses on emerging online harms and safeguarding responses

More than 100 representatives from policing, safeguarding, local government, health, education, academia, and the voluntary sector came together this week to examine the growing threat posed by online “Com” networks and explore how agencies can work together to respond.

The conference, hosted jointly by Clare Moody, Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset, the Bath P-ACE team at the University of Bath, and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit, focused on understanding the risks associated with Com networks, sharing lessons learned, and strengthening partnership responses across the South West.

Com networks are online communities linked to some of the most serious forms of harm, including child sexual abuse, serious violence, cybercrime, and extremism. Operating across geographical boundaries and digital platforms, they present complex challenges for the organisations responsible for protecting children, and young people.

Opening the conference, Clare Moody highlighted the importance of partnership working in tackling emerging threats that do not sit neatly within the responsibilities of any one organisation.

She said “The threats facing our communities are changing. The need for partnership is not.“

“No single organisation sees the whole picture. A teacher may notice a change in behaviour. A police officer may identify criminal activity. A youth worker may have built the trust that allows a young person to disclose what is happening. Each may be seeing a different part of the same problem.”

Delegates heard from researchers, policing specialists and practitioners working at the forefront of this emerging field. Presentations included findings from research commissioned through the ESRC-funded Network Plus for Analytical Behavioural Science for Security and Defence (NABS+), insights into pathways into Com networks, and examples of how forces and partners are responding to cases locally.

Attendees also explored how agencies can identify and respond to emerging risks, improve information sharing, and strengthen safeguarding arrangements for those at risk of harm.

The conference brought together representatives from the five police forces across the South West alongside local authorities, national policing bodies and partner organisations, creating an opportunity to share learning and build stronger regional connections.

Clare Moody also stressed the importance of ensuring that learning from the South West helps shape national conversations about emerging online harms, drawing on her role as the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ joint lead for victims and violence against women and girls.

She said the conference would help strengthen understanding and partnerships across the region, adding “We can’t solve the challenges posed by Com networks in one day. But we can leave here better informed, better connected and better equipped to respond.”