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2014 has been a pretty monumental year in the fight against FGM. It's the year that the British government announced tough new action and funding to protect girls at home and abroad from female genital mutilation (FGM) and forced marriage, with new legislation being enforced and specialist programmes, services and an international charter being drawn up (and about time too.)

And now, another key approach to tackling FGM is happening in our airports, as part of a new UK Border Force campaign. The campaign involves the extensive training of flight attendants and airline staff in spotting victims of FGM, forced marriage or child trafficking travelling in and out of the country. As well as happening here in the UK, FGM more commonly takes place in African countries and parts of the Middle East, which means families often take young children abroad to have the procedure carried out – usually without the child knowing anything about it until it's too late (instead believing they're going abroad for a party or 'special celebration'). If families decide to stay in the UK for the procedure, the 'cutters' (the people carrying out FGM) are flown into the UK instead to operate on young girls, at the invitation of their parents.

As a result, the Border Force Safeguarding Team at London's Gatwick Airport is undergoing training (so far, over 70 officers have taken part) in detecting suspicious cases and high-risk individuals on flights. Targeting specific high-risk flights (to and from many west African countries, Somalia, Egypt and Saudi Arabia) they're working with the police to flag up and investigate potential cases. I was invited by the Border Force Safeguarding Team at London's Gatwick Airport to watch them in action and find out exactly what they're doing, and how effective the campaign has been.

Joe Cuddy, Chief Immigration Officer at Gatwick airport is responsible for the initiative and led the training. "We launched the campaign in the summer holidays – a key time for FGM because it gives young girls enough time to 'heal' without teachers or friends noticing anything," he explained. "Girls are absent from school for a long period of time, so a trip abroad (or time off school) won't cause alarm. Officers have been looking at inbound and outbound flights – focusing on protection and prevention on the outbound flights (can we help these girls? Raise the alarm if we notice anything suspicious?) and detection on the inbound flights (do the girls returning from holidays seem ok? Has anything happened to them abroad?)."

But how can they tell if a girl has undergone – or is about to undergo – FGM? "When it comes to families travelling together, we try to be aware of everything," says Joe. "Seventy per cent of communication is non-verbal, so we look at the behaviours of passengers. This could include anything from how they communicate with each other and their eye-contact, to whether they look in pain or discomfort (often girls who are returning from abroad after FGM have difficulty walking and need the toilet frequently). We speak to parents and children arriving or leaving the country, asking them where they've been (just one place, or lots regions?), who they're travelling with (and why? Was it a 'special surprise' or 'celebration' – often code for FGM). We'll also ask who they were visiting and – if it's not summer holidays – why they're not in school. We're also given information from regional intelligence units, who flag up anything suspicious to us to look into. If something looks suspect to us, we'll refer cases or individuals to the police, who we work with very closely."

It's not just girls and families who the team look out for either – they're also targeting 'cutters' travelling into and out of the country. "We'll look for certain items that suggest they're carrying out FGM – like photographs of families, bloodied cloths (to prove FGM had occurred and the girl is 'pure' and ready for marriage) as well as bottles that contain dirty water and sand - used to clean the cutting equipment, and as further proof of the procedure," says Joe. "We've given certain 'high-risk' flights awareness packages too, so all staff are aware of what to look out for."

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Some of the Border Force Safeguarding Team

To watch the team in action, I waited for an incoming flight from Istanbul – a location targeted thanks to its 'travel hub' status, connecting to so many destinations (Dubai is another). As the 155 passengers from all over the world disembarked their flight and headed to passport control, staff began their questioning. Did they find anything suspicious? In this instance, no – but as Border Force Officer Debbie Yeates explained, it's impossible to predict when you will. "That's the importance of the training – we can't tell what will happen or when, which is why it's crucial everybody knows how to deal with high-risk situations when they arise," she said.

Of course, it's not foolproof. "We can't always question everybody and sometimes people try and escape our notice," explains Debbie. "Often travellers get different flights home to put us off the scent if they're worried about us checking out their story – booking elaborate long journeys to avoid questioning (often citing the lower price as a reason when asked). But on the whole, it's been a success. For example, we recently checked a flight to Gambia with a high level of 14-17-year-old girls on it and encountered one family with a 12-year-old girl. We had concerns about her, so passed her information to police. Enquiries are still ongoing – so in that respect, change is being made."

We couldn't agree more – and with over 30 referrals already being investigated, a full waiting list of staff yet to be trained and more training plans planned on a national scale, it's one hell of a huge step in the right direction.

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Sophie Goddard
Features Editor

I’m Cosmo's Acting Features Editor. I love stripes and lipstick. But please don't talk to me about needles (I'm a fainter).