Hollyoaks actors Isabelle Smith, Tamara Wall, and Anya Lawrence talk with real life survivors of child exploitation, and representatives from the charity Causeway, who advised on a recent related Hollyoaks storyline, in new short doc Groomed and Exploited.
In the video, which releases today on Hollyoaks’ social media channels, Smith and Lawrence visit a group of 16 to 18-year-olds at Liverpool college LIPA to discuss the importance of knowing how to spot the signs of exploitation.
Over the past few months, Hollyoaks have explored criminal and sexual exploitation with the show’s young characters, Frankie Osborne (Smith), Dillon Ray (Nathaniel Dass) and Anya Lawrence (Vicky Grant).
Best friends Frankie and Dillon found themselves in danger earlier this year when they were targeted with the offer of a lifestyle that they perceive to be glamorous. The reality was that they were lured into world of criminal and sexual exploitation.
The documentary, filmed on the Hollyoaks set, sees Melanie, who has lived experience with sexual exploitation, talk to Isabelle Smith about how her difficult upbringing contributed to her being vulnerable to being exploited. With Melanie’s story intertwined with clips of the Hollyoaks storyline, it’s clear to see the parallels with Frankie’s experience.
Melanie said: “Growing up in a dysfunctional home I witnessed a lot of violence… this led to my behaviour being very dysfunctional, getting into the wrong crowds of people, taking drugs and alcohol at a very young age…”
Melanie wants to share her story in the hopes of breaking the silence and stigma around exploitation, telling other survivors that “their past doesn’t define their future and healing is possible.”
Later, in touching scenes, Wall comforts Sabrina as she reflects on her years after escaping her abusers: “I felt a lot of shame, embarrassment etc, and then I realised it’s not my shame to hold, it’s not my embarrassment,” the yoingster says.
Meanwhile, Causeway representatives Iona and Chad discuss their aims to educate people on the signs of child exploitation. “The more people who are able to spot the signs, who are able to raise concerns, the more people we prevent from being exploited in the future,” said Chad.
In addition, LIPA students watch clips from the Hollyoaks storyline and discuss the importance of highlighting the different perspectives of child exploitation.
