Hampshire had 150 potential victims of modern slavery referred last year

A POTENTIAL victim of modern slavery was referred to police more than on average every two days during the first nine months of 2020.
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Home Office figures show 150 potential slavery and trafficking victims in Hampshire were referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) – the UK’s apparatus for identifying and supporting victims – between January and September last year.

Nearly two thirds of the total in the county were children aged 17 or under or adults exploited as children.

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But charities say the NRM figures are an underestimate of the true extent of slavery in the UK, as adults need to consent to a referral.

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Modern Slavery

It also relies on designated first responders such as police and councils being aware of the programme and how to refer victims – something the Human Trafficking Foundation says is lacking.

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Hampshire Modern Slavery Partnership coordinator Kate Davis told The News that, since the MSP was set up in 2015, the team have produced a victim pathway to help frontline staff understand what to do if they think someone is a potential victim of modern slavery as well as put on webinars for more specific support.

Ms Davis said: ‘On the data side of things we want to be able to recognise as many victims as possible and we want to try and up our intelligence in terms of the perpetrators they are aware of.

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‘The criminal exploitation is one of the big ones for child exploitation especially boys in Hampshire. It has had a huge impact and I think again it is something we are still learning about. They target really vulnerable boys that are separated from their family and the gang becomes their family. It is challenging to get them a way out as they don’t recognise themselves as victims.’

Once people are referred through the NRM, the Home Office will make a ‘reasonable grounds decision’ to determine if the person is likely a victim.

Of the 7,623 people the Home Office made decisions on between January and September, 6,980 (92 per cent) were judged to be genuine victims and could access accommodation and other support.

It also made 2,484 ‘conclusive grounds’ decisions – the second stage of the process, in which the Home Office makes a definitive ruling – of which 89 per cent were positive.

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