North Wales Regional Approach to tackling Modern Day Slavery:
North Wales continues to invest resources in tackling Modern Day Slavery. The previous Regional Anti-Human Trafficking Project was the first of its kind in the UK, with Wales at the forefront of addressing Human Trafficking in all its forms. Some 29 agencies, across the public sector and their charitable partners, have recognised that one of the oldest and most insidious forms of human exploitation is very much alive and ‘hidden in plain sight’ throughout modern Britain. This is not just an ‘inner city phenomenon’, and North Wales is affected as much as anywhere.
Modern Slavery as it is known under recent new legislation brought into force in 2015 blights modern society through labour exploitation (e.g. fruit & veg picking, food packing), criminal exploitation (e.g. cannabis cultivation), sexual exploitation, organ harvesting and child exploitation (which tragically includes all of the above).
The Four Strategic aims of tackling Modern Day Slavery in North Wales are:-
- Awareness Raising: Embedding training within Local Authorities and partner agencies, supported by a followed by a public awareness campaign during the annual Anti-Slavery Week – this is complimented by improved intelligence sharing, data collection and more robust referral mechanisms.
- Investigation: Improving the ways in which law enforcement and criminal justice partners identify and investigate Modern Slavery in all its forms and bringing offenders to justice.
The overall objective is: ‘To make Wales hostile to Modern Slavery’ in all its forms.
Suspected incidents of Modern Slavery should be reported as follows:-
In case of any Emergency: dial 999
For a Non-emergency: dial 101
If wanting to report anonymously, call Crimestoppers: 0800 555 111
National Modern slavery helpline: 0800 0121700
Support for victims of Modern Slavery in North Wales: call BAWSO on 0800 731 8147
