Key Statistics on Gang Recruitment
- Approximately 27,000 children (ages 10–17) in England are estimated to be affiliated with urban street gangs. Of these, about 14,800 are boys (versus 12,200 girls), highlighting a slightly higher male prevalence.
- A British Transport Police survey found that nearly 1 in 5 (19%) teenage boys aged 13–19 say they or a friend have been offered work by drug gangs.
- Gangs commonly recruit very young boys: the Home Office reports children as young as 9–11 are being coerced into county lines and drug-dealing roles.
- Data from HM Inspectorate of Probation indicates about 27,000 children aged 10–17 identify as gang members in England, with roughly one-quarter known to authorities. Boys comprise around 70–92% of those identified by services, suggesting many remain off the radar.
This means that in UK
- 10–17-year-olds in gangs: ~27,000
- Boys within that group: ~14,800
- Teen boys offered gang work: ~19%
- Children recruited as young as 9–11
Why Gangs Humiliate Boys to Recruit Them
Gangs in the UK often humiliate boys as part of the recruitment process, and while the methods can seem senselessly cruel from the outside, there is a calculated psychological purpose behind them. Humiliation strips a young boy of his dignity, shattering his former identity and breaking his emotional ties to his previous life—his family, his school, his community. Once this foundation is destroyed, the gang becomes his new source of belonging, loyalty, and self-worth. The boy, having been isolated from his old life, now feels that the gang is the only place he truly belongs.
Beyond this, humiliation serves as a brutal test of obedience and loyalty. Gangs deliberately place boys in situations where they must endure pain, shame, or commit acts they know are wrong. This is not random cruelty; it is a method to determine if the boy will follow orders without question. Those who refuse are seen as liabilities. Those who submit prove that they can be trusted to carry out commands—no matter how damaging or degrading. Once a boy has gone through the initiation, the shame he carries becomes a powerful control mechanism. He becomes less likely to reach out for help or return to the people who once loved him because doing so would mean confronting the deep humiliation he has suffered.
This shame creates isolation, and isolation strengthens the gang’s grip. Many boys are trapped not just by fear of violence but by an overwhelming sense of disgrace. They feel contaminated by what they have endured or done. That feeling of being "too far gone" keeps them tethered to the gang, even as they suffer. In psychological terms, this dynamic can create what’s called a trauma bond—a distorted attachment where the boy feels loyalty and dependence toward the very people who harmed him.
Furthermore, in gang culture, toughness is everything. Emotional expression is seen as weakness. Humiliating new recruits acts as an early "stress test," weeding out anyone who cannot suppress fear, pain, or hesitation. Only those who can bury their emotions and endure are considered strong enough to survive the violent, unpredictable life of gang membership.
At its core, the use of humiliation is about psychological ownership. By forcing boys through degrading experiences, gangs implant a sense of debt and belonging. The boy is made to feel that he owes the gang his loyalty because he has paid a painful price to be accepted. This debt can feel lifelong, binding him to the group far more tightly than threats or promises ever could.
In cities like London, Manchester, and Birmingham, the use of humiliation has become a standard part of grooming young boys into criminal networks like county lines operations. Understanding this process is essential when working with young people who have been pulled into gangs. Humiliation is not just about breaking the boy for one moment—it is about reprogramming his entire sense of who he is and where he belongs. Unless we understand and address this psychological warfare, real rehabilitation and rescue efforts will continue to fall short.
Sexual Assault as a Weapon in Gangs
Perhaps one of the most disturbing and least spoken-of realities in gang culture is the use of sexual violence against boys—often by adult men who are themselves part of the gang. At first glance, it raises a deeply unsettling question: why would men, who are not gay, sexually assault boys? The answer is as brutal as it is clear. It is not about sexual orientation. It is about power. Control. Psychological annihilation.
Sexual violence is the most intimate and devastating form of domination. In the context of gangs, it is not used for pleasure, but for breaking the spirit. It tells the boy, without words, “You are nothing. We own you. There is no part of you we cannot touch.” In the same way prison rape is used to establish a hierarchy, gang rape or sexual assault becomes the ultimate tool to humiliate, control, and destroy resistance. Once that boundary has been crossed, the boy is no longer just afraid of the gang—he is ashamed of himself. And shame is perhaps the most powerful silencer of all.
In the communities most affected by gang culture, especially among working-class and Black British boys—there is a deep-rooted silence around male vulnerability, let alone male sexual victimisation. Boys who are sexually assaulted in this way are often left with nowhere to turn. They cannot speak to their peers, who might mock or reject them. They cannot speak to their families, who may be unequipped to handle the truth. They certainly do not trust the police. That isolation is part of the strategy. The gang knows that after such a violation, the boy is far more likely to stay loyal—because where else can he go?
Sometimes, sexual violence is used as punishment—when a boy disobeys, tries to leave, or breaks a rule. In other cases, it is used as an initiation ritual, a test of submission and silence. Either way, it sends a message not just to the victim, but to everyone watching: We can do anything to you. We are the law here. This is not just physical assault. It is psychological warfare.
What makes it even more tragic is that many of the perpetrators were once victims themselves. Having been broken by similar experiences, they re-enact the abuse as a way of reclaiming control. In this twisted system, power is passed down through cycles of humiliation and violence. It is a perverse inheritance—one that turns trauma into tradition.
The result is a trauma bond of immense strength. A boy who has been assaulted and then accepted by his abuser may feel a disturbing kind of closeness. It’s not love. It’s survival. The boy internalises a belief: If I can’t escape them, I might as well belong to them. And once that belief takes root, the gang doesn’t need to threaten him anymore—he will stay, protect them, and even defend them, because he has been emotionally welded to his captors.
The reason I'm sharing all of this information is because I'm trying to lead you to a point—a point that I believe is crucial to understand, and that I have discovered through experience. There is a dark world that seems to be running a lot of Britain, and almost no one wants to talk about it. There is molestation, paedophilia, neglect, abuse, and trauma. Violence happens within families, within communities, within gangs. It happens across different cultures, races, and creeds—and yet, most people remain completely unaware of it. This world isn’t exposed to the average person unless you are involved in safeguarding work, in the police, or in a role that gives you access to sensitive information about what truly happens in a town, village, city, or county—or even on a national scale.
The reality is the average person has no real idea of the depth and darkness that exists under the surface of everyday life. I'm talking about these things because I've been fortunate enough to attend safeguarding meetings, police briefings, and to work in mental health services as a counsellor. I've listened to countless people's stories. I've made it my mission not just to understand the good that exists—the great parents, the brilliant organisations, the positive community initiatives—but also to understand the darker side of life.
And my conclusion, from everything I’ve seen and heard, is that much of life is heavily influenced—often without anyone realising—by this darker undercurrent. Trauma. Abandonment. Unaddressed violence and exploitation. When we look at issues like fatherlessness, for example, we rarely connect it to the deeper realities—that many boys have been sexually exploited, abused, and groomed. And because we don't see or acknowledge this, the impact filters silently into society: into policing, into public perceptions, into policies and safeguarding strategies. There are knock-on effects that ripple through time, yet nobody seems to realise where they originally came from. I’m not writing this to give advice. But if there's one thing I hope to encourage, it’s the importance of understanding how things are connected. We cannot afford to keep looking at issues in isolation anymore.
Common Ways Gangs Humiliate Teenage Boys (that they'd recognise)
Here’s a list of real-world examples of how gang leaders humiliate teenage boys during grooming or initiation. These examples are drawn from police reports, safeguarding case reviews, frontline professionals, and survivor accounts. These aren't abstract ideas, these are situations that many young men have either seen, heard about, or experienced
- Making them clean weapons or drugs with no gloves
- Seen as “earning trust,” but really just degrading and risky.
- Sending them to dangerous areas alone
- They're told to “prove themselves” by walking through rival postcodes or trap houses — fully aware they could be attacked.
- Slapping or punching them in front of others
- Public beat-downs or “checking” to establish dominance and test submission.
- Making them “hold stuff” in body cavities (known as plugging)
- Extremely degrading, painful, and dangerous — yet often demanded with threats.
- Forcing them to run errands like a servant
- Buy food, clean shoes, or carry bags while being mocked. It’s disguised as “banter” but is deliberately belittling.
- Exposing them on social media or group chats
- Posting humiliating videos, mocking voice notes, or leaking private info as punishment or control.
- Calling them names like “waste man,” “runner,” or “bitch boy”
- Meant to break down their ego, especially in front of peers. It’s psychological warfare.
- Being ordered to commit a crime they’re uncomfortable with
- For example, robbing a kid they know from school, slapping a stranger, or beating up someone innocent — then filming it.
- Using their own trauma against them
- If they’ve been in care, had abuse, or are struggling at home — leaders might mock them for it in private or in front of others.
- Making them wait around for hours in the cold
- Telling them to stay outside, deliver at night, or sit in stairwells for hours with no food, no toilet, and no explanation — just to assert power.
- Filming or witnessing abuse
- Making them watch or record a violent act — sometimes even sexual violence — to test their silence and loyalty.
- Telling them to pick between loyalty and family
- Saying things like “If you ride with us, forget your mum” — forcing a boy to emotionally distance from loved ones.
- Spreading lies that they snitched or begged
- Even if they didn’t — the fear of being seen as “soft” or a “snitch” keeps them compliant and silent.
- Initiation beatdowns
- A group of gang members “jump” the boy, sometimes recording it. The more he takes it without fighting back, the more “ready” he is seen to be.
- Forcing them to do “county lines” runs
- Sending them hundreds of miles away, alone, with no backup, into unknown towns — completely vulnerable and disoriented.
Why These Tactics Work
These actions aren't just about crime, they’re about control, shame, and isolation. By humiliating boys, the gang strips away their identity and replaces it with a false sense of belonging. They destroy the bridges back home so the boy has nowhere else to go.
How Male Minds Counselling Can Help
At Male Minds Counselling, we understand the unspeakable. We know that behind the silence of many boys and men lies a history of humiliation, abuse, and trauma — often hidden beneath layers of toughness, denial, or shame. We don’t flinch at the stories others turn away from. Instead, we hold space for them.
Many of the young men who are caught in gang culture or trapped in cycles of violence and crime are not broken — they are wounded. Wounded by betrayal, by manipulation, and by deeply traumatic experiences that were never processed. Our counselling service provides a safe, non-judgmental space for boys and men to begin reclaiming their identity — not through force, but through understanding and healing.
We recognise that what gangs take away most brutally is dignity. They strip boys of their self-worth and replace it with shame and silence. Our work helps to reverse that. Through trauma-informed therapy, we work to:
- Unpack the shame that’s been internalised through humiliation, abuse, or sexual violence.
- Interrupt trauma bonds, helping clients understand why they might feel connected to those who harmed them.
- Reconnect them to themselves, their families (when safe), and their communities in healthy, non-violent ways.
- Teach emotional literacy — a skill many boys never got to learn growing up, especially when “toughness” was the only language allowed.
- Create long-term strategies for rebuilding identity, trust, and a sense of power that doesn’t rely on control or violence.
Whether someone has been through initiation abuse, sexual assault, gang grooming, or simply carries deep emotional scars from their environment, Male Minds Counselling is a place where that story can be told — and transformed.
We do not offer easy fixes. But we offer something far more powerful: consistent, skilled, and culturally sensitive support from professionals who understand that masculinity, pain, and recovery can — and must — coexist.
If you or someone you know is ready to start the process of healing, we are here.
Cassim