Surge in potential slavery victims in Derbyshire

Anti-trafficking charity Hope for Justice said many police forces lack specialist officers to deal with these cases, meaning not enough perpetrators are being investigated and prosecuted.

Figures from the Home Office show Derbyshire Constabulary was responsible for investigating 170 referrals where a person was a potential victim of modern slavery, including 86 children, in the year to June. Overall, it was up from 118 in 2021-22.

Adam Hewitt, a Hope for Justice spokesperson, said the identification of victims and referral is an important step towards survivors getting support.

He added: "Unfortunately, even after a referral, many survivors face incredibly long delays in having a final decision made on their case – often years.

"A lack of resources and specialised teams at many police forces, plus the complexity of many cases, mean not enough perpetrators are being investigated and prosecuted."

Across the UK, more than 17,700 potential victims of modern slavery were referred to the Home Office in 2022-23 – a significant jump from 14,600 the year before. Of the referrals last year, nearly 7,600 were children.

Despite the annual increase, the most recent quarterly data for April to June saw the lowest level of referrals since the start of 2022.

Andrew Wallis, chief executive of anti-slavery charity Unseen, said this is a result of the Government's move to change Home Office guidance earlier this year requiring claimants to prove they are victims by submitting third-party evidence of modern slavery and trafficking.

Legal challenges by two people who were refused protection under the new threshold led to the Government conceding and withdrawing the new guidance last month.

Mr Wallis said: "To the scale of the problem, everybody accepts – except maybe the Government – that at any one time in the UK somewhere in excess of 120,00 victims of modern slavery are in a situation of exploitation.

"And, even though we have found nearly 18,000, sadly most of those victims will be replaced by another person."

He added: "Until every police force, officer, statutory agency, and society as a whole understand what modern slavery looks like, we will never be able to say that we have a true picture of the size and scope of modern slavery.”

A spokesperson for Derbyshire Police said: “Derbyshire Constabulary is committed to tackling modern slavery and we have been working hard to increase awareness and understanding of modern slavery. These figures reflect these improvements and that means that more potential victims are being identified and protected.

“We have a dedicated team of specialist officers who work to tackle this abhorrent criminality, bringing offenders to justice and safeguarding those at risk of harm and continue to work closely with the Derby and Derbyshire Modern Slavery Partnership to work together to fight slavery and support victims of slavery in Derbyshire.

“We are not complacent however, and continue to strive for improvements in this area. We would urge anyone that suspects modern slavery is happening, to tell someone as soon as it’s safe to, whether it be about a victim, a suspect, or a particular business or place. You will always be taken seriously, and protection and support is available.”