Slavery helpline ‘had nearly 300 calls revealing potential victims in 18 months’

Calls to a modern slavery helpline revealed 297 potential victims in 18 months, according to a new report.

There were 172 calls and 34 online reports to the Modern Slavery Helpline relating to situations in Scotland between its launch in October 2016 and the end of March 2018, the report from charity Unseen found.

These indicated 82 cases involving 297 potential victims (PVs) of trafficking and exploitation in Scotland, as one case may involve several PVs.

Labour exploitation was the most common type of exploitation reported, comprising 60.9% of cases.

Almost a fifth (17%) of cases related to sexual exploitation, which was the second most prevalent form of exploitation.

Car washes (15 cases) and nail bars (11 cases) were the most common locations of modern slavery reported to the helpline

One in 10 ( 11%) of potential victims were children (34 individuals), with street exploitation the most common sector where they were exploited.

Andrew Wallis, chief executive of Unseen, which runs the helpline, said: “With cases in 19 out of 33 Scottish counties, this report underlines the fact that slavery is all around us.

“It's at the car wash, the nail bar, the takeaway and the hotel, as well as the farms that grow our food.

“It's not a problem taking place far away that we can't do anything about, it's under our noses and we can arm ourselves by learning to spot the signs of slavery and report it to the helpline.

“Your call could mean somebody's freedom.''

More than half (53%), of PVs where gender was known were male (156 people), which was almost double the number of females (86 individuals).

It is thought this may be because of the number of reported cases involving labour exploitation where the percentage of men tends to be higher.

The largest number of potential victims came from Romania (10%) while 5.7% of PVs were of British origin, making it the third most prevalent nationality.

Of the 34 minors seven were from Romania, making it the most prevalent group, and five were from Scotland.

Justine Currell, executive director at Unseen, said: “We have been able to identify more and more potential victims as awareness grows around this hidden crime, and the numbers of contacts to the helpline increase.

“In particular, we saw a spike in calls when the Scottish Government ran its trafficking awareness campaign last autumn.

“Our approach shows that collaboration is vital and everyone has a part to play in recognising and reporting slavery.''

The helpline made 78 referrals on cases of human trafficking and exploitation including 63 referrals to Police Scotland, 13 referrals to local authorities plus others to the Gangsters and Labour Abuse Authority or an NGO.

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said: “Through the publication of Scotland's first Trafficking Strategy and implementation of the 2015 Trafficking Act, we are working with partners to raise awareness and improve our response to this terrible crime and are taking forward work to further support victims and crack down on perpetrators.

“Last year saw a 38% increase in trafficking referrals from Scotland, with the largest increase in labour exploitation.

“This suggests that we are getting better at identifying and reporting victims of trafficking, and ensuring they receive the help and support they need.'