MEDIA RELEASE

Marching in front of the fountain

Marching in front of the fountain

Image by Kristofer Gustafsson

 
More men than ever before are getting the help they need after suffering at the hands of human traffickers, despite a lack of awareness of their plight by the public.
 
A briefing released today by The Salvation Army, on the first six months of delivering the contract to support adult victims of human trafficking in England and Wales, highlights that 41% of those supported are men trafficked for labour exploitation.
 
Yet a survey of English and Welsh adults carried out by YouGov for The Salvation Army to find out public perceptions of human trafficking reveals that, on average, respondents thought 29% of all trafficked victims in England and Wales are male.
 
The survey also found that of those who gave an estimate, respondents said an average of 68% of all trafficked victims were sexually exploited, yet The Salvation Army’s briefing states that of those supported by the new contract 45% were forced into sexual exploitation, 43% were involved in labour exploitation and 8% were trafficked into domestic servitude.
 
The Salvation Army also dealt with its first case of human trafficking for organ removal within this period.
 
Last year The Salvation Army was awarded the contract from the Ministry of Justice to provide specialist support for adult victims of human trafficking in England and Wales, including safe accommodation, counselling, medical care, translation services and legal counselling. Victims seeking help have been trafficked to or within England and Wales and are referred to the service through a dedicated referral line 0300 303 8151 available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
 
Between 1 July 2011 and 31 December 2011, The Salvation Army, and its 12 sub contractors across England and Wales, supported 112 women and 78 men through their traumatic experiences and they were given time to try and re-build their lives.
 
The briefing from The Salvation Army reveals that most victims referred to them are from the police (44%), with the South East of England (54%) accounting for the majority of referrals. The victims helped have come from all over the world, including 58% from Eastern Europe, 25% from Africa, 12% from Asia and 4% are trafficked from within the UK.
 
Major Anne Read, The Salvation Army’s Anti-Trafficking Response Co-ordinator, said: “Male or female, no matter where the victim is in England and Wales or the reason that they are trafficked, we are helping all people caught up in all types of trafficking to get them the support they need, when they need it.
 
“The Salvation Army has a strong track record of supporting victims of human trafficking and we are working with a wide range of experts in delivering the contract to ensure that specialist, individually tailored support is available to every victim. This includes gender-specific services and support for victims with disabilities and mental health needs.”
 
Minister for Justice, Crispin Blunt, said:
 
"Human trafficking is often seen as predominantly affecting women- meaning that male victims are often overlooked and are forced to go without the support they so desperately need. The support The Salvation Army offer to trafficking victims, regardless of gender, was a key reason why they were awarded the contract. In the first six months of providing this service, The Salvation Army have shown that they are able to offer a high quality, tailored system of support to some of the most vulnerable victims, regardless of their country of origin, religion or gender."  
 
Two male trafficking victims from the Czech Republic were trafficked to the UK into forced labour after answering an advert in a national newspaper for work as factory supervisors in England. The pair were sold numerous times to other gangmasters within the UK. The Salvation Army gave the victims temporary accommodation and support until they moved to Scotland to start a new life.
 
Aleksander said: “I was given the number of The Salvation Army. They saved me and they took me to a police station, where I made a statement. That same day we helped my friend to escape who had been trafficked the same way as me. The Salvation Army hid us in a safehouse. It’s sad but it’s true; there are hundreds of people with similar stories to me, people who have been fraudulently bought and sold.”
 
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Notes
 
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,828 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 17- 19 April 2012. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all English and Welsh adults (aged 18+).
 
* Referrals made to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) during the 27 months of operation from 1st April 2009 to 30th June 2011 http://www.soca.gov.uk/about-soca/about-the-ukhtc/national-referral-mechanism/statistics
 
Names of victims have been changed to protect their identity.
 
The Salvation Army is an international Christian church and registered charity working in 124 countries worldwide and is one of the largest, most diverse providers of social welfare in the world. Registered Charity Nos. 214779, 215174 and in Scotland SC009359, SC037691. For more information visit the website www.salvationarmy.org.uk
                                                                                                                                                                
The Salvation Army is deeply committed to fighting human trafficking however it may be manifested and seeks to exercise care in restoring the freedom and dignity of those affected. For more information visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/uki/trafficking
 
About the contract
The Salvation Army took responsibility for delivering the UK government’s contract in July 2011 to manage support services for adult female and male victims of Human Trafficking. The specialist support programme is designed to preserve the dignity of victims, protect and care for them in safe accommodation, and provide access to confidential client-based support services including Legal Advice, Health Care, Counselling, Educational Opportunities
 
Victims seeking help have been trafficked to or within England and Wales and are referred to the service through a dedicated referral line 0300 303 8151 available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.Each victim is being given individual specialist support at centres on 15 sites across the UK or through an outreach programme. Of the 15 locations:
·         Eight locations support women, four support men and three support both men and women
·         Seven locations can support either same or opposite sex couples, seven can support pregnant women and four can support families or parents with children
·         Six locations have 24/7 staffing, six are staffed during the day with on-call support overnight, and three have floating support with on-call arrangements in place
·         Based on a tiered assessment of the support needs, risk issues and security needs that providers are best placed to address, six were rated as high level, six as medium and three as low leveljaelithe.leigh-brown@salvationarmy.org.uk
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