What is Modern Slavery
Modern slavery is the recruitment, movement, harbouring or receiving of children, women or men through the use of force, coercion, abuse of vulnerability, deception or other means for the purpose of exploitation.
Someone is in slavery if they are:
- forced to work through coercion, or mental or physical threat
- trapped and controlled by an ’employer’, through mental or physical abuse or the threat of abuse
- dehumanised, treated as a commodity or bought and sold as ‘property’
- physically constrained or have restrictions placed on their freedom of movement
There are many types of modern slavery, but these are the most prevalent types:
- 'slavery' is where ownership is exercised over a person
- 'servitude' involves the obligation to provide services imposed by coercion
- 'forced or compulsory labour' involves work or service extracted from any person under the menace of a penalty and for which the person has not offered himself voluntarily
- 'human trafficking' concerns arranging or facilitating the travel of another with a view to exploiting them
Types of Slavery and Human Trafficking
Domestic servitude
Employees working in private homes are forced or coerced into serving and/or fraudulently convinced that they have no option to leave.
Sex trafficking
Women, men or children that are forced into the commercial sex industry and held against their will by force, fraud or coercion.
Forced labour
Human beings are forced to work under the threat of violence and for no pay. These slaves are treated as property and exploited to create a product for commercial sale.
Bonded labour
Individuals that are compelled to work in order to repay a debt and unable to leave until the debt is repaid. It is the most common form of enslavement in the world.
Child labour
Any enslavement – whether forced labour, domestic servitude, bonded labour or sex trafficking of a child.
Forced marriage
Adults and children who are forced to marry another without their consent or against their will.
County lines – movement of drugs
County Lines exploitation describes how gangs and criminal networks from towns, use children, young people and vulnerable adults to deliver class A drugs to customers in county and rural areas. This often involves vulnerable people being subject to deception, intimidation, violence and grooming.
How to report concerns
Modern Slavery is a crime that is hidden from plain sight but, occurs everywhere around us. Modern slavery is happening in Enfield.
If you would like to discuss your concerns with social services, please contact:
- Enfield Adult Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub: 020 8379 3196
- Enfield Children Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub: 020 8379 5555
- Enfield Adult Abuse Line: 020 8379 5212
Other agencies and the public are still encouraged to report their suspicions and can do so by calling:
- National Modern Slavery Helpline : 0800 0121 700
- Police: 101
Remember in an emergency, when someone is being harmed or abused, call the police on 999.
Further information
- Modern slavery guide for landlords
- Enfield Modern Slavery Policy and Procedures
- Modern Slavery Strategy 2023 - 2028
- Indicators of Modern Slavery
- Modern Slavery reporting pathway in Enfield
- Specialist support for adult victims of modern slavery
- Modern Slavery annual report 2022-2023
- Modern Slavery annual report 2021 - 22
- HTF London Modern Slavery Leads Report 2020 - 21
Enfield Council's approach
The government estimates that there are as many as 13,000 people in modern slavery in the UK. Modern slavery is a serious crime which encompasses slavery, servitude and forced labour and human trafficking. They are extremely vulnerable men, women and children who are abused for criminal profit, often forced to live in squalor, and work long hours for little or no wages. They are stripped of their freedom and human rights, and traumatised.
Enfield Council is developing a strategy to effectively tackle the problem of slavery. The approach to tackling human trafficking is multi-faceted and insurmountable if not broken down into component parts with our partner agencies.
Enfield will be encompassing the governments 4P’s to aid our approach – Prevent, Protect, Pursue, Prepare.
- Prevent: Raising awareness, intelligence gathering and reporting, disruption and intervention
- Pursue: Investigate and prosecute
- Protect: Short, medium and long-term protection and support for the vulnerable
- Prepare: Have arrangements in place to facilitate above and undertake major operations