FAQs: Trafficking

Child trafficking involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the purpose of exploitation. [1] Trafficking is distinct from smuggling children into the UK, which is solely about facilitating entry.

Children are trafficked to the UK for a number of reasons, including sexual exploitation, forced labour, domestic servitude, criminal activities, benefit fraud and illegal adoption. Criminal activities can include drug trafficking, cannabis cultivation, petty theft and selling counterfeit goods.

In European law, exploitation includes, as a minimum, ‘the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, including begging, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude, or the exploitation of criminal activities, or the removal of organs.’ [2]

Children and young people who are trafficked to the UK often travel alone or with an adult who is not their parent or legal guardian. They may travel to the UK through different visa routes (with valid or false documents), or without need for a visa (for example, in the case of nationals from the European Economic Area), or may be brought to the UK clandestinely. Some traffickers may tell the child or young person to claim asylum on arrival in the UK (either at port or at the Asylum Screening Unit after entry), whereas others may not come to the attention of the UK Border Agency for a long time after entry.

Notes
[1] Article 4, Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. In the case of a child, no possible consent can ever be considered valid. For adults the definition is different and involves an additional element: coercive or deceptive means used to obtain the victim's consent.
[2] Article 2, Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2011 on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims

Children and young people who have been trafficked are very vulnerable. They are likely to be scared of their traffickers, who may have subjected them to psychological abuse, threats of or actual physical or sexual violence, or neglect. They may have been told that they are to pay off a debt to their traffickers. Their ability to escape from the situation may be impeded by not being able to speak to anyone in their own language, or by being afraid of coming to the attention of the authorities.

Even when they do come to the attention of statutory or voluntary service providers, children and young people who have been trafficked may not disclose what has happened to them and may deny that they have been exploited, or disclosure may take a long time. A child or young person may have been coached by their traffickers as to what to say about their identity and their circumstances.

It is therefore very important that professionals are able to recognise indicators that a child or young person may have been trafficked. Identification as a victim of trafficking is the gateway to protection and support, and may also impact on their immigration or asylum case. Without identification as victims of trafficking, children may not be given adequate protection and support, and may remain at risk, especially if they are inappropriately accommodated and remain in contact with their traffickers. Trafficked children are very vulnerable to going missing from local authority care. [1] In addition, they may face criminal prosecution for illegal activities that were carried out under orders or for immigration offences.

Trafficking victims may be identified by immigration officers at a port of entry. If the child has a visa, immigration officers should check that a child arriving in the UK is travelling with the adult named in the child’s visa. Victims may also come to the attention of the authorities in police or immigration operations and raids, or they may come to the attention of other agencies, professionals or service providers, or members of the public.

All agencies working with children should be alert to signs of trafficking, including trafficking profiles, trafficking routes and arrangements, and the types of control exercised by traffickers. The London Safeguarding Children Board has put together guidance and assessment tools to help agencies to identify and support children who have been trafficked. This includes an assessment framework with different indicators to look for, such as:

• Signs of malnourishment;

• Unexplained phone calls while in a placement;

• Money or possessions which are unaccounted for;

• Signs of physical or sexual abuse;

• Going missing from local authority care;

• Fear of authority figures;

• A prepared story, possibly very similar to that of other children;

• A history with missing links and unexplained moves;

• Showing fear for their family in the country of origin;

• Lack of knowledge of where they are.

The framework is designed to help professionals to use the information they have about a child to identify child victims of trafficking and assess the risk of harm to a child. The assessment includes questions on the child’s development, family and environment. While any professionals working with children can use the assessment tool, those professionals who have not had specific training should, where possible, complete it with their agency’s nominated safeguarding children adviser. The toolkit was updated in March 2011. The complete toolkit, including the risk assessment matrix, can be found on the trafficking resources page.

Notes
[1] Report from the joint inquiry into children who go missing from care, All-Party Parliamentary Group for Runaway and Missing Children and All-Party Parliamentary Group for Looked After Children and Care Leavers, June 2012

All agencies and professionals who work with or are in contact with children have a responsibility to safeguard and promote their welfare, and this includes safeguarding children from trafficking. [1]

Following the UK Government’s ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, which came into force on 1 April 2009, public authorities have a duty to identify and protect victims of trafficking. Through ratifying this Convention, the government committed itself to minimum standards for the protection of victims of human trafficking. There is recent government guidance on protecting child victims of trafficking called ‘Safeguarding children who may have been trafficked: Practice guidance’.

All those who work with children and young people need to be aware of child trafficking as a child protection issue. Migrant children who have been trafficked have the same right to be protected as any other children and their immigration status should in no way detract from the need to safeguard them. Children protection policies and procedures should be followed and a referral made to the local authority children’s services department.

Referral to children’s services

If trafficking indicators are identified, the child should be referred to children’s services immediately so they can initiate child protection procedures if appropriate. Children’s services should conduct an initial assessment and then accommodate the child, and where necessary conduct a child protection enquiry and a core assessment of need under section 47 of the Children Act 1989.

Children’s services should advise the referrer of which of the above plans is in place.

Referral to the National Referral Mechanism

In order to comply with the Council of Europe Convention, the government introduced a system called the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in April 2009 to identify and protect victims of trafficking. This means there is a particular process to be followed when it is suspected that someone might be a victim of trafficking.

The National Referral Mechanism is a process designed to identify and support victims of trafficking, both children and adults. Referrals to the NRM can only be made by selected agencies known as ‘First Responders’. The First Responders are public agencies or other bodies that are recognised in this role, including the police and local authorities.

The following are recognised as First Responders:

• Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA)
• Police
• UK Border Agency
• Gangmasters Licensing Authority
• Local Authorities
• Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Northern Ireland)
• Salvation Army
• Poppy Project
• Migrant Helpline
• Medaille Trust
• Kalayaan
• TARA (Scotland)
• NSPCC Child Trafficking Advice and Information Line
• Barnardo's

The referral of a potential victim of trafficking into the NRM by a First Responder involves completing a referral form in which they summarise the evidence for believing the person is a victim of trafficking. There is an adult referral form and a child referral form.

This referral form will then be assessed by what is known as a ‘Competent Authority’. In the UK the designated Competent Authorities are:

• The UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC). This will be the relevant Competent Authority where the potential victim is a UK citizen or there are no immigration issues.

   

• The UK Border Agency (an executive agency of the Home Office). This will be the relevant Competent Authority where there are asylum or immigration issues.

The Competent Authority will consider the referral. Under the co-ordination of Local Safeguarding Children Boards local authorities and partners should work very closely with the Competent Authority to ensure all relevant information is considered before any decisions are made on whether a child is a victim of trafficking. The local authority children’s services department remains responsible for assessing and providing for the needs of a child who is a potential victim of trafficking, including support and accommodation.

The Competent Authority should decide within five working days (this can be extended where necessary) whether or not there are reasonable grounds for believing that the person has been trafficked. This is known as the reasonable grounds decision. There is a low threshold at this stage: the test is ‘from the information available so far I suspect but cannot prove’. If the Competent Authority decides that there are no reasonable grounds, there is no right of appeal. The only way to challenge this decision is through judicial review in the High Court.

Where the Competent Authority considers that there are reasonable grounds to believe that someone is a victim of trafficking, the person will be granted a (minimum) 45-day ‘recovery and reflection period’. No action to detain or remove the person should be taken during this time. The idea of this initial process is that action should be taken to protect the person even before a full identification process has been completed.

Before the end of the 45-day recovery and reflection period, the Competent Authority will make what is known as a conclusive grounds decision on whether the person is a victim of trafficking, [2] or otherwise will decide to extend the recovery period (to a maximum of 90 days). As with a negative reasonable grounds decision, a negative conclusive grounds decision can only be challenged by the process of judicial review in the High Court. Please see below for further information on the impact of a conclusive grounds decision on someone’s immigration case. Please see the trafficking resources page for more information on the National Referral Mechanism.

Notes
[1] Section 11, Children Act 2004 and section 55, Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009
[2] The test at this stage is whether, on the balance of probabilities, there is sufficient information to conclude that the individual is more likely than not a victim of trafficking.

If someone without regular immigration status in the UK receives a conclusive grounds decision from the Competent Authority that they are a victim of trafficking, they may be granted a renewable residence permit, with access to public funds and the right to work. This permit will be for a minimum of 12 months in duration, and will be granted on one or both of the following grounds: participation with a criminal investigation and/or due to their personal circumstances.

A child or young person with no regular immigration status who has been trafficked will be going through the NRM process, but they may also make an immigration, human rights or asylum application. It is very important to note that victims of trafficking, and in particular child victims of trafficking, may fall within the Refugee Convention, to be granted asylum on the basis that the harm feared amounts to persecution. [1]

For further information, please see the FAQs on the immigration and asylum process.

Notes
[1] See UNHCR Guidelines on International Protection: The application of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol relating to the Staus of Refugees to victims of trafficking and persons at risk of being trafficked

Trafficked children and young people are extremely vulnerable and it is the responsibility of professionals who come into contact with them to provide them with the necessary support and protection. The children’s services department of a local authority is responsible for assessing and providing for the needs of all vulnerable children, including victims of trafficking. (See FAQs on support for separated children.)

Trafficked children are entitled to support under section 20 of the Children Act 1989 and as such should be provided with safe accommodation. They should not be placed in unsuitable accommodation such as a bed and breakfast or hostel. If there is a risk that they will suffer significant harm if found by the trafficker, child protection procedures under section 47 of the Children Act 1989 should be followed, and the child should be taken into care under section 31 of the Children Act 1989.

Trafficked children and young people frequently go missing both on arrival in the country and after being placed in local authority care. [1] It is extremely important that professionals refer children they suspect to have been trafficked to the relevant authority promptly, before they go missing, and that local authorities take the serious risk of a trafficked child going missing into account when planning that child’s care.

If a young person who is a suspected trafficking victim goes missing, it is essential that professionals contact the police and Missing People immediately to inform them. It is recommended that they also contact the UK Border Agency (UKBA). It has been found that practice with regards to locating a child’s whereabouts improves where different welfare and law enforcement agencies work together to locate the child.

Notes
[1] Report from the joint inquiry into children who go missing from care, All-Party Parliamentary Group for Runaway and Missing Children and All-Party Parliamentary Group for Looked After Children and Care Leavers, June 2012

Many separated children have their ages disputed, either by the UK Border Agency or a local authority. They are disbelieved about how old they are. For further information on age assessments and age disputes, please see the FAQs on age assessment.

However, there are specific issues that should be considered in relation to the age of victims of trafficking.

First, a child victim of trafficking may have been told to say that they are older than they are, or to say that they are an adult. Victims of trafficking have often been powerfully controlled and will continue to provide the information that they have been told to disclose, including about their age. They may have been provided with false documents and these may contain adult dates of birth so as to avoid additional scrutiny by border officials and authorities.

Second, there are specific provisions relating to the application of the benefit of the doubt on the age of child victims of trafficking. Under Article 10 of the Council of Europe Trafficking Convention, where a young person is age disputed, he or she should be presumed to be a child and accorded special measures pending verification of his or her age and status as a trafficked victim.

Certain crimes [1] are recognised as likely to be committed by trafficked children and young people. These include street crime and the cultivation of cannabis. However, often children are not identified as potential victims of trafficking and are instead charged with criminal offences relating to illegal activities or immigration offences.

There is a duty of awareness on the police and Crown Prosecution Service, along with other agencies, under Article 10 of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. [2] CPS guidance [3] provides that officers must remain aware of crimes which may have been committed under duress or coercion by children who have been trafficked, and remain vigilant of the fact that children in conflict with the criminal process could be trafficking victims. Government guidelines [4] advise that the police work in partnership with local agencies to identify children with whom they come into contact who may possibly have been trafficked. If is it recognised that a child involved with the law may be a trafficking victim, a referral should be made to a First Responder, who will then make a referral to the relevant Competent Authority of the National Referral Mechanism (please see above). Several resources offer advice on identification of trafficked children. [5] Immediate indicators include malnourishment and possession of a mobile phone but no money. Whilst in the UK possible indicators include contact with adults outside the normal range of contacts, persistent lateness or absence without explanation and being well cared for despite having no known base. The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre highlights problems specific to identification of trafficked children by the police and Crown Prosecution Service: the use of false information such as names and dates of birth could present as collusion with the trafficker and do not match the normal perception of a victim. [6] Guidance states that where there is any suggestion that a child has been trafficked, all evidence in the case must be re-reviewed, and policy guidance complied with. Crown Prosecution Services guidance refers to cases of trafficked children, [7] stating that where clear evidence is available showing a defence of duress for a trafficked child the case should not be prosecuted. Reduced co-operation by a young person could be a result of duress or coercion; this factor should be taken into account by officers conducting investigations and prosecution. The code requires prosecutors to consider the best interests of children and young people when assessing whether it is in the public interest to prosecute. Children who have been trafficked may be reluctant to disclose the circumstances of their exploitation or arrival into the UK for fear of reprisals by the trafficker or owner, or out of misplaced loyalty to them. This reluctance to disclose the real circumstances in which they have arrived into the country may have implications for a number of youth criminal justice processes.

The child may have been coached by their trafficker not to disclose their true identity or circumstances to the authorities. In some cases, they may have been coached with a false version of events and warned not to disclose any detail beyond this as it will lead to their deportation and/or removal. Clear evidence of trafficking leading to committing of offences should result in the young person not being prosecuted, and less clear evidence should prompt further enquiries. There is a possibility that where a case has been discontinued, a child may then become a victim or witness in a trial against their traffickers. Advice on provision for therapy for child witnesses is available from the Department of Health website. [8] Where a child or young person who is a victim of trafficking is being prosecuted for illegal activities or an immigration offence, their trafficking should be raised by the criminal defence solicitor representing them. However, not all criminal solicitors are aware of trafficking and the immigration law implications, and many advise clients to plead guilty. Where this has occurred and a child or young person has been convicted, their trafficking may only be noticed much later, possibly in a young offenders institution or prison. If any practitioner has trafficking concerns at this point, they should raise them and legal advice from a criminal solicitor and an immigration solicitor should be sought as soon as possible. It may be possible to pursue an out-of-time appeal against the conviction. A further avenue is the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which can look into a criminal case when someone thinks they have been wrongly convicted.

Notes
[1] CPS Legal Guidance on Human trafficking and Smuggling
[2] Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings
[3] CPS Legal Guidance on Human trafficking and Smuggling
[4] Working Together to Safeguard Children: A guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children
[5] See especially trafficking resource page of the London Safeguarding Children Board website
[6] A scoping study into the outcomes for children and young people encountered in cannabis factories in the UK
[7] CPS Legal Guidance on Safeguarding Children as Victims and Witnesses
[8] Provision of therapy for child witnesses prior to criminal trial: Practice guidance