New modern slavery guidance for prison staff
/R (ATLEU and QW) v Secretary of State for Justice (CO/3171/2021, CO/3107/2021)
In an important development for survivors, the Secretary of State for Justice has confirmed that he will develop guidance on victims and potential victims of modern slavery for prison staff.
This guidance is the result of the settlement of a judicial review claim brought by ATLEU on behalf of all victims and potential victims of modern slavery in prisons. Current statistics suggest that 45% of all individuals who entered the NRM in the first quarter of 2022 had suffered criminal exploitation.
ATLEU provided examples of survivors to illustrate regular failings in the system, which included evidence of victims who:
Were detained in the same prison or cell as the people who may have trafficked them
Had been moved to prisons near where their exploitation took place without notice or consultation
Had been, or were likely to have been re-trafficked shortly after their release.
This was in addition to evidence of a lack of access to fundamental services such as mental health health support, key worker support, legal representation, interpretation facilities and information about legal rights, all of which are specific legal entitlements of victims and potential victims. Further, we shared incidences of our clients who had other prisoners, including potential exploiters, being used as informal interpreters by prison staff.
The consent order in the case brought by ATLEU sets out new guidance should be available by 31 October 2022 and will require:
Key workers and all other prison staff to be informed when an individual is granted a positive Reasonable or Conclusive Grounds decision as a victim or potential victim of modern slavery
Key workers to assess the individual needs of a victim or potential victim so that they are properly supported in prison
Prison staff to liaise with partner agencies, including the Salvation Army, who operate the government contract which provides community support for victims of modern slavery before a victim is released from prison to support resettlement and protect them from re-trafficking
Specific provision in relation to bail applications, including (if appropriate) communicating with the Salvation Army who can provide safe house accommodation to victims.
Finally, the government has confirmed that it will consider whether staff in UK prisons should be designated as 'First Responders' which would enable staff to identify potential victims of modern slavery when indicators first appear, to help potential victims to enter the NRM sooner.
The Group of Experts on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings ('GRETA'), recently produced their third evaluation report on the United Kingdom (20 October 2021). GRETA noted that 'insufficient attention is being given to the issue of trafficking among the prison population' .
In defending the claim, the government accepted that the Secretary of State for Justice was responsible for identifying and supporting victims and raising awareness of this crime among prisoners/individuals in detention and staff, but said that the general services available in prison were sufficient to discharge his duties.
As a result of the litigation, the government admitted:
That there is no overarching written policy covering the steps that should be taken by prisons when they have victims of potential victims of modern slavery
That there is no means by which those who operate existing systems will even be informed that a prisoner may be a victim.
These circumstances were particularly concerning in the context of the prison environment because of the specific anti-snitch culture, in addition to staff being perceived to be in positions of authority, which means that it is highly likely that victims will not disclose what has happened to them and therefore not get any support.
Indeed, it is already recognised by the government that in general, victims of modern slavery should not be expected to self-identify as victims in the first place. It was argued that these failings in the prison system unjustifiably discriminate against victims and potential victims of modern slavery detained under criminal powers in prisons and that they do not provide practical and effective support for individual potential victims.
ATLEU are delighted with the commitments from the government which we hope will fill the gap in desperately needed support for victims of modern slavery in prisons. We look forward to collaborating on the guidance before its publication.
ATLEU is extremely grateful to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP for their pro bono representation in this case. Counsel for the Claimants were Chris Buttler QC (Matrix Chambers), Marisa Cohen (Doughty Street Chambers) and Katy Sheridan (Matrix Chambers).
