North Wales MS Mark Isherwood has commended a new project which will provide advice and support services for survivors of Modern Slavery.
Conwy Citizens Advice have launched a ‘Tackling Modern Slavery in Ever Changing Times’ project, with funding for the part time post of Modern Slavery Lead from the Gwynt y Môr Community Fund, which will work to raise awareness of modern slavery across Conwy, North Wales and Wales.
Throughout the coming year, the project will be hosting various training and information sessions at community hubs and through outreach, dealing with concerns raised by members of the public that someone may be at risk or experiencing exploitation, and providing advice and support for anyone who may be at risk or who has experienced exploitation.
People will be able to confidentially share any concerns that they have about Modern Slavery abuses in their communities through a letter box project.
Speaking at the launch of the event, Mr Isherwood said that Modern Slavery is “a reality in our country” and that “Partnerships between the statutory agencies and the third sector are key to tackling this crime, protecting the vulnerable, educating all members of the community, supporting survivors and working towards making Wales a safer place, where criminals are not able to exploit others. “
He said:
“Citizens Advice Conwy are concerned about the wellbeing of people locally who may be at risk or have experienced Modern Slavery in their lives, and will be available to provide advice and services for survivors.
“They will have a visible community outreach initiative making sites available where people can report concerns confidentially.
“They have purchased Green ‘letter boxes’, which will be placed initially at the Dewi Sant Community Centre Pensarn and Llandudno Town Hall, and then various other locations, so that members of the community will be able to report concerns anonymously in the months ahead.”
He added:
“Last year’s Centre for Social Justice and anti-slavery charity Justice and Care report, ‘It Still Happens Here: Fighting UK Slavery in the 2020s’ states there are likely to be more than 100,000 victims of modern slavery in the UK - including more than 4,600 in Wales.
“This report also found: that many thousands of children, women and men of all nationalities and backgrounds - including a growing number of British citizens - continue to be trafficked and exploited for profit by ruthless criminal networks; that our understanding of slavery and how to fight it must improve on the frontline if we are to tackle it; that a ‘local lottery’ exists when it comes to prioritising the anti-slavery fight across public authorities, and that Human traffickers and Organised Crime Groups are running riot in too many communities, with very few facing prosecution relative to the number of victims found and even fewer convicted.
“In October 2018 I attended the North Wales Modern Slavery Forum, ahead of Modern Slavery Week that year, and Antislavery Day across the UK, organised by the third sector organisation, ‘Haven of Light’, for survivors of Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking in North Wales. Their Director, Ali Ussery,
is working with Conwy Citizen’s Advice Chief Executive, Gwyneth Millington and Team, as their Modern Slavery Lead.
“At this event, we heard that alongside victims being trafficked into the UK, the biggest affected population in the UK are actually people born in Britain who are being trafficked by Britons.
“We also heard that Modern Slavery was alive in business, agriculture, hospitality, criminal activity and sexual exploitation across North Wales, in rural communities, towns and every single county.”
Mr Isherwood went on to praise the project being launched in Conwy.
He said:
“The partnership involved in the ‘Tackling Modern Slavery in Ever Changing Times’ project being launched today focuses on those in our communities who are vulnerable, at risk or have experienced exploitation.
“We need excellent partnerships of organisations such as this to continue, delivering bespoke projects which prioritise the person’s wellbeing as they move on with their lives.”