Our Roles and Approaches

• Police – Searching, Finding, Prosecution of

Offenders linked to exploitation

• CSC – Safeguarding and Welfare action for

children

• YOS/ Gangs – Diverting and Intervening with

young people and adults (age 10 – 25)

• Embedded in CSCB –Multi agency

membership

Case study 1

• Child A – 13 year old girl

• Vulnerable through CSE and County lines

• NRM referral completed and accepted as exploited

• Close partnership working ensured safeguarding was

quickly put in place

Case study 2

• Child B – 14 year old male

• Using placement sporadically

• Regular strategy meetings meant harm was

identified and measures put in place

• Child effectively safeguarded and placed in

secure accommodation

What do we do well?• Regular strategy meetings

• Fortnightly CSE meeting

• Monthly MASE and Missing Panel

• Weekly gangs tasking

• Daily missing briefing

• 6 weekly cross county force intel meetings

• South London CSE network

• CSCB subgroup

Partnership intervention

For example – Operation Rosario

• Mystery shopping/ test purchase exercise in local

hotels

• Informed by local research and intel

• Supported and delivered by multi agency group

• Debrief with ‘tested’ hotels

• Informed future strategy

Partnership intervention – cont’d

• County Lines workshop resource for schools

• Daily Missing Report for multi agency

network

• CSE, Missing and Trafficking newsletter in

development

Challenges

• Recent OFSTED learning

• Staff retention and training

• NRM referral pathways for children

• Suitable accommodation to protect children is

not always immediately available

Modern Day Slavery

A post Care Act safeguarding social work response

Changes post Care Act 2014

• First legislation for adult safeguarding

• Added 3 categories of abuse to the 2011 London Multi Agency Policies and

Procedures

• Modern Day Slavery, Self-Neglect, Domestic Abuse

• Social Workers had come across this but it was not day to day practice or seen

as the responsibility of all social work teams

• As a result it is fair to say that this is not a category that people have vast

experience in or a running knowledge of the network of those involved in

prevention

Types of MDS

• Sexual exploitation: Links to child sexual exploitation and more organised forced

prostitution

• Domestic Abuse

• Forced labour

• Domestic Servitude

Hestia Report of November 2017:

• 61 cases in Croydon (51 were sexual exploitation)

Problems in recognising slavery as slavery

• Due to lack of experience there is a lack of awareness

• In time we need to build up a trained eye

• MDS often appears as other issues such as labour disputes, poor quality

employment, domestic violence, immigration issues

• Thus too often left to the subjective decision making, not a black and white

decision

• Croydon developed standard operating procedures for 140 social workers

• Still does not come up often when compared to other categories

• A natural level of professional anxiety when dealing with such cases

Comparisons to Children’s safeguarding

• NRM is consent based

• Duty to report- notification to Human Trafficking Centre

• Attention of authorities may be looked upon unfavourably due to fears of being

deported, being in trouble with the authorities, invisible shackles

• “Care and support needs” to meet eligibility, consider protection plan when not

yet established

Points of consideration

• Mental Capacity: Assess all areas, revisit, consider undue influence, what assistance do we give to communication, use of advocacy

• Are we considering control and coercion as well as undue influence

• NRM is not the end of the process, what risk assessment and protection planning can we hand to others, how can we prevent re-victimisation

• Repatriation: Risk assessing, engaging the network

• The notion of the first responder: Clear your diary case, the ability and confidence to report, the skill to interview and address statutory needs (such as reporting, gain relevant information, address psychosocial needs), not dissimilar to the One Chance Rule in forced marriage

• Trauma counselling

• Medical attention

Challenges

• The balance of infrequent cases with keeping running knowledge of at least the

salient features of a comprehensive response (SAMs and social workers)- Use of

MDS prevention champions

• The shortage of housing: Be willing to accommodate

• Recognising cases as MDS

• Being flexible with resources (translators)- help elicit the wishes and feelings of

the client

• Continued joint working with the network both locally and further afield

• Expanding need for advocacy in a limited pool of advocates

Prevention of Modern Slavery in Croydon sub-group

• The National Referral Mechanism (NRM)

• Establishment of the Prevention of Modern Slavery in Croydon Sub-Group

• Development of adult and child trafficking protocols and process map

• Awareness raising

• The Modern Slavery Act 2015

Croydon Action Plan

• The Home Office published the UK Modern Slavery Strategy in 2014

‘The Four P’s’ Pursue, Prevent, Protect & Prepare

• The Prevention of Modern Slavery in Croydon sub-group have developed a draft multi-agency action plan to work toward

achieving some of the goals of the Strategy and the Modern Slavery Act 2015

• Some of the key actions in the draft plan are:-

– Raising awareness of modern slavery with practitioners, members of the public and organisations which may come

into contact with victims of trafficking such as estate agents & hotels

– Working with partner organisations to identify properties where human trafficking may be taking place

– Develop information to provide to suspected victims of trafficking

– Development of referral process with A&E for suspected cases

– Duty to report

– Taking a proactive approach