Prostitution has a huge impact on the lives of the women involved but escaping is often fraught with difficulty.

Drug dependency, housing problems, violence and debt can all form part of the problem, with the cost measured both in human terms and the illegal trade's impact on local services.

Professor Roger Matthews, from University of Kent, says more money should be spent on creating 'exit strategies' for women looking to leave prostitution behind.

There can be many barriers to escaping prostitution. Stock picture

Professor Matthews, who has co-authoured a new book on leaving prostitution, said many women are looking for ways to escape.

"A large percentage of women would like to get out but what they need is a helping hand that makes leaving possible" - Professor Roger Matthews

"Some of these women are quite damaged," he said, "but they are also very resilient people who seem to be capable to blocking out the past when they decide they want to get out and it's surprising how effective they are at changing their lives."

"Some women suffer a traumatic event. One woman we interviewed was subject to serious violence and decided that was it. Some are getting older and felt they'd been doing it too long; others wanted to reconnect with children.

"Some women had effective drug treatment that helped them clear their heads. Meeting new partners is also another reason they decide to leave.

"A large percentage of women would like to get out but what they need is a helping hand that makes leaving possible."

It's not just women working in the sex trade who benefit from leaving prostitution.

Professor Matthews said there is a convincing financial argument for funding more multi-agency exit strategies.

"If you get them out you save local authorities a considerable amount of money in terms of the services needed to take care of these women and sometimes their children.

"What we found is engaging exit programmes is a very cost-effective way of dealing with the whole issue of prostitution."

One such project is Safe Exit, launched in Medway in 2009.

“The scheme is good for the girls because they get the services quicker and it’s better for everyone else because it saves time and money" - Sgt Natalie Williams

Run by police in Medway working with NHS Medway, Medway council and drug agencies to support sex workers, Safe Exit addresses the problems preventing women escaping from prostitution.

Women caught soliciting by police are given the option to either take part in the scheme or face court action.

If women elect to join they can get help with housing, benefits, and addiction, as well as take part in women’s groups.

Within a year of the scheme starting, the number of prostitutes dropped from about 100 to fewer than 20.

Sgt Natalie Williams, who helps run the scheme, said: “We still carry out high visibility policing in the New Road area and have specialist officers to deal with the sex workers and we also engage with residents regularly as well.

“The scheme is good for the girls because they get the services quicker and it’s better for everyone else because it saves time and money."

A patient receives care in hospital. Stock picture

Speaking about similar projects studied in his own research, professor Matthews said: "There has been some support from government budgets so part of the aim of the book is to show exiting is both possible and desirable.

"Government funding is very limited we'd like to see more money and resources and agencies given more encouragement to develop effective exit strategies."

Professor Matthews's book Exiting Prostitution: A Study in Female Desistance, is published by Palgrave Macmillan.

It was written by Professor Matthews, Professor of Criminology at the University of Kent’s School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research; Helen Easton, Lecturer in Criminology at the Department of Social Sciences, London South Bank University; Lisa Young; Eaves, UK; Julia Bindel, Journalist and Researcher, UK.

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