Helping hands were proffered by police, councillors and the public yesterday to help raise awareness of child sexual exploitation as a new social media campaign was launched across the county.

Throughout the day, using the twitter hashtags #HelpingHands and #CSEDay15, people posted pictures of their hands on the social media site to encourage the reporting of abuse.

The campaign is the next phase in the Say Something If You See Something campaign which Herts police launched last year.

Chairman of the county’s Safeguarding Children Board Phil Picton said: “It takes everybody working together to tackle CSE.

“We’re dedicated to raising awareness of the signs of sexual abuse.

“Together we can create more positive outcomes for vulnerable young people.”