麻豆社

This highly personal series investigates how criminal networks systematically exploit vulnerable young people, transforming them from ordinary schoolchildren into drug dealers through manipulation, violence, and trauma. An estimated 50,000 children in Britain have been groomed into county lines drug trafficking, yet their stories remain largely hidden.

Phoebe McIndoe is both journalist and sister to someone caught in county lines and, in this final episode, she widens the lens to understand how austerity and social breakdown created fertile ground for county lines to flourish. From youth club closures to a crumbling care system, she considers how the loss of community safety nets left children vulnerable to exploitation.

Through conversations with activists and those leading innovative solutions, she asks what must change to break this cycle of exploitation and rebuild the protective networks our children need.

Presented by Phoebe McIndoe
Produced by Phoebe McIndoe and Redzi Bernard
With original music by Phoebe McIndoe
A Falling Tree production for 麻豆社 Radio 4