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Adele Irving and Dr Mary Laing

PEER (Promoting Education, Empowerment and Research): Exploring the Lives of Sex Workers in Tyne and Wear. Adele Irving and Dr Mary Laing. Recent Research . Evaluation of the UKNSWP ‘National Ugly Mugs’ (NUM) Pilot Scheme Male Action Project (MAP)

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Adele Irving and Dr Mary Laing

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  1. PEER (Promoting Education, Empowerment and Research):Exploring the Lives of Sex Workers in Tyne and Wear Adele Irving and Dr Mary Laing

  2. Recent Research • Evaluation of the UKNSWP ‘National Ugly Mugs’ (NUM) Pilot Scheme • Male Action Project (MAP) • PEER: Exploring the Lives of Sex Workers in Tyne and Wear

  3. PEER Overview • Partnership project-GAP (Cyrenians). • Provide a robust evidence base regarding the experiences and service needs of women engaging in sex work in Tyne and Wear. • Peer-led methodology. • 36 sex worker interviews (14 escorts, 20 survival sex workers, 1 trafficked woman, 1 male escort). • 15 stakeholder interviews, 1 focus group.

  4. Survival Findings: Demographics and Sex Work • 6 or 13 regarded sex work as main source of income. • 6 of 14 had qualifications. • 7 engaged in sex work before the age of 17. • 16 of 19 experienced life event linked to entry. • 15 of 16 do not ‘enjoy’ sex work. • 10 of 15 outlined strategies aimed at harm minimisation. • 10 of 14 have had strange requests. • 10 of 14 have had bad experiences. • 10 of 14 have had violent experiences.

  5. Survival Findings: Health and Relationships • 14 of 16 sex work had not impacted on physical health. • 10 of 15 sex work had not impacted on sexual health. • All 18 women reported mental health difficulties. • 12 of 14 have felt judged by a service provider. • 10 of 12 have had social services involvement. • 13 of 16 described childhood in negative / neutral terms. • 9 of 12 experienced significant life event as a child. • 5 of 11 reported to have friends. 3 of 9 close to family. • 13 of 15 victims of domestic violence.

  6. Survival Findings: Addiction, Housing and Offending • 15 of 16 had experienced problematic drug use. • 9 of 11 accessing drug treatment. • 15 of 19 had experienced homelessness. • 8 living in supported or temporary accommodation. • 9 of 10 linked sex work and homelessness. • 6 of 11 worried that sex work is illegal. • All 15 women had a criminal record. • 11 of 14 women had been to prison. • 4 of 8 women reported receiving help when left prison.

  7. Escort Findings: Demographics and Escorting • 13 of 14 experiences of other types of work. • 8 were introduced by a friend. • 6 of 12 run as a business. 5 of 12 pay tax. • 12 of 12 enjoy escort work. • 12 of 12 identified drawbacks. • Strategies for keeping safe and minimising risk evident, some underlying worries. • Described good clients and bad clients. • All 9 described positive relationships with regular clients. • 5 of 14 had experienced a violent client.

  8. Escort Findings: Health and Relationships • 8 of 10 reported positive impact on confidence. • 10 of 11 felt there to be stigma around escorting. • 6 of 12 reported emotional impact from escort work. • Physical health: 4 no impact, 2 positive, 6 negative. • 11 of 11 reported no negative impacts on sexual health. • 7 of 13 identified mental health issues. • 8 of 11 had experienced domestic violence. • 7 positive childhoods. 4 negative childhoods. • 12 of 12 reported positive social networks.

  9. Escort Findings: Addiction, Housing and Offending • One case of problematic drugs use. • One instance of housing problems. • 5 of 10 understand the law re: sex work. • 5 of 10 police have negative perception of escorts. • 3 of 10 have contacted the police in relation to escorting. • 6 of 11 would contact the police if they had to. • 3 of 12 women have a criminal record. • None been to prison.

  10. Stakeholder Findings • Mixed levels of knowledge and awareness: • Types of service • Strategic Vs Operational • Low levels of disclosure. • Service users not routinely asked about involvement in sex work. • Further training Vs Competing priorities. • Support for local sex work strategy.

  11. Recommendations • Sex work training • Dedicated Liaison Officers • Dedicated escort service • Greater partnership working between: • CJS, homelessness and women’s projects • Social services and sex work projects • Mental health and domestic violence • Additional specialist sex work projects • Continuation funding for GAP • Local sex work strategy

  12. Thank you • Any questions? • Mary Laing, Lecturer in Criminology, Social Sciences, Mary.laing@northumbria.ac.uk • Adele Irving, Research Fellow, Centre for Public Policy, Adele2.irving@northumbria.ac.uk

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