This episode looks at the barriers faced by women who want to exit prostitution. Discussing the issue with us is Carol, who has lived experience of prostitution and whose name we have changed to protect her identity.

Carol was subjected to prostitution for 50 years before successfully exiting in her 60s. She wanted to share her story to highlight the complexities that can result in women being exploited through prostitution and what is needed to help women exit.

The number of people involved in prostitution in the UK is difficult to quantify due to its hidden nature and the absence of any survey on a national level. However, estimates suggest that over 72,000 individuals are exchanging sex for money or other benefit of need, with the overwhelming majority of them being women. Women subjected to prostitution often have extensive experiences of trauma, abuse and male violence, and experience addiction and poor mental and physical health as a consequence.

We want to give a content warning: Carol talks about child sexual abuse, suicide attempts, drug addiction and trauma. We'd encourage you to look after yourself while listening and use supervision and peer support if this episode brings up anything difficult for you.

If you're supporting a woman subjected to prostitution and are interested in contacting nia about its specialist exiting services and refuge provision, visit the prostitution page on its website or call 07880 230 516. Women can access nia's service if they are over 18 and currently involved in prostitution in London. They can refer themselves or be referred by an agency.

Questions are asked by Natalie Valios, senior content editor, Community Care Inform Adults.

This episode looks at the barriers faced by women who want to exit prostitution. Discussing the issue with us is Carol, who has lived experience of prostitution and whose name we have changed to protect her identity. Carol was subjected to prostitution for 50 years before successfully exiting in her 60s. She wanted to share her story to highlight the complexities that can result in women being exploited through prostitution and what is needed to help women exit. The number of people involved in prostitution in the UK is difficult to quantify due to its hidden nature and the absence of any survey on a national level. However, estimates suggest that over 72,000 individuals are exchanging sex for money or other benefit of need, with the overwhelming majority of them being women. Women subjected to prostitution often have extensive experiences of trauma, abuse and male violence, and experience addiction and poor mental and physical health as a consequence. We want to give a content warning: Carol talks about child sexual abuse, suicide attempts, drug addiction and trauma. We'd encourage you to look after yourself while listening and use supervision and peer support if this episode brings up anything difficult for you. If you're supporting a woman subjected to prostitution and are interested in contacting nia about its specialist exiting services and refuge provision, <a href="https://niaendingviolence.org.uk/get-help/prostitution/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">visit the prostitution page on its website</a> or call 07880 230 516. Women can access nia's service if they are over 18 and currently involved in prostitution in London. They can refer themselves or be referred by an agency. Questions are asked by Natalie Valios, senior content editor, Community Care Inform Adults.

Learn on the go is the Community Care Inform podcast where practitioners, trainers, consultants, academics and researchers discuss practice, research, and theories and what they mean for social workers. Listening to episodes is a convenient way to learn and refresh your knowledge when you don’t have much time to read or prefer other ways of getting information and reflecting on your practice.

We’ve been recording Learn on the go on an ad hoc basis since 2017. Over these eight years our podcast audience has grown, and in 2025 we made the decision to start recording Learn on the go in seasons. We launched Season 1 Episode 1 in January 2025.

During each season, episodes are released monthly on the last Friday of the month and all episodes appear on Inform Adults and Inform Children or you can subscribe to Learn on the go through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Learn on the go is the Community Care Inform podcast where practitioners, trainers, consultants, academics and researchers discuss practice, research, and theories and what they mean for social workers. Listening to episodes is a convenient way to learn and refresh your knowledge when you don’t have much time to read or prefer other ways of getting information and reflecting on your practice.   We’ve been recording Learn on the go on an ad hoc basis since 2017. Over these eight years our podcast audience has grown, and in 2025 we made the decision to start recording Learn on the go in seasons. We launched Season 1 Episode 1 in January 2025.   During each season, episodes are released monthly on the last Friday of the month and all episodes appear on Inform Adults and Inform Children or you can <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/learn-on-the-go/id1268644821" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">subscribe to Learn on the go through Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/17Hqmsd9mouCwMfXUpf4GD" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Spotify</a>, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

We discuss the latest research, theories and practice issues, and look at what they mean for social workers.

Learn on the go: the Community Care podcast

This episode looks at the barriers faced by women who want to exit prostitution. Discussing the issue with us is Carol, who has lived experience of prostitution and whose name we have changed to protect her identity.

Carol was subjected to...