President Sue welcomed Sam Baxendale as our speaker at the November meeting. Sam works for the Medaille Trust and manages two safe houses for the victims of human trafficking.
She told us about the process that victims go through in the UK. When a person is identified, usually by the police, there is a National Referral Mechanism which comes into action. Eight days are allocated in which time the person is referred to the National Crime Agency to establish if there are ‘reasonable grounds’ to assume they are a victim of human trafficking. This being established, they are given a further 45 days respite in a safe house. The government has a contract with the Salvation Army who works with other charities such as the Medaille Trust to house victims.
Sam told us many personal stories of the people she has helped in the north. Victims can be repatriated by the government and some of them work with the police to bring the perpetrators of modern day slavery to justice. Some, however, do not fare as well at the end of this government funded respite period and may even become homeless.
