In January 2011, it was announced that Whitney would be part of a upcoming storyline on sexual exploitation. Whitney is left alone and vulnerable, and falls for a man, Rob Grayson, played by Jody Latham,who exploits her for financial gain. EastEnders worked alongside charity Comic Relief on the storyline, which started planning in 2010. The storyline will culminate during Red Nose Day 2011 on 19 March 2011, in a special ten-minute episode. Gilly Green, Head of UK Grants at Comic Relief, said: “It is vital that we continue to alert young people to the dangers if we are to stop them being exploited and the opportunity to work with EastEnders will make a huge audience aware of this issue. We have been working with the EastEnders script writers and some of the young women from projects we support to ensure the story reflects the reality of young people caught up in sexual exploitation. Kevin Cahill, Chief Executive of Comic Relief, added “We have worked over many years with EastEnders in all kinds of ways. It’s been a real pleasure this year to work together on a piece of serious drama, in the best traditions of public service, which will highlight an important issue and also, because it occurs on the night of Comic Relief, actually help raise crucial funds to help young women caught up in it. The storyline begins when Bianca is sent to prison and Whitney rejects her family, moving in with Janine and attempting to make money by stealing from The Queen Victoria, causing her to get sacked, working for Max, whom she tries to kiss as she has a crush on him, and pickpocketing. When she is caught, Rob rescues her from the situation and offers her what McGarty called a “dream life”, which Whitney thinks is her chance to move up in the world as she feels lonely and has no friends.

McGarty told Inside Soap that she hoped the storyline would have a positive impact, saying that she had done some research herself before filming, meeting teenage girls who had been exploited and hearing their experiences.She said she felt honoured and privileged to be given the storyline.

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