Local Focus
The Humber Modern Slavery Partnership delivered an event alongside North and South bank partners on 4 February. This event focused on the National Referral Mechanism and what 'good' looks like when completing and submitting referrals.
In April, the Humber Modern Slavery Partnership in partnership with Community V.I.S.I.O.N are due to deliver an event for the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise organisations across Hull and East Riding. It will examine their role around Modern Slavery.
For more details, please visit:
Hull & East Riding Modern Slavery Event for the VCFSE Sector (external website)
National Focus
In February 2026 the Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit provided an update on the funding position for the Modern Slavery element of the Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit for the 2026/27 financial year, following recent correspondence with the Home Office.
The unit confirmed that there will be no dedicated national policing funding for modern slavery activity beyond March 2026.
The local impact of this is being discussed with partners and an update will be provided in the future.
On 7 April 2026 the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) will become the Fair Work Agency (FWA) along with The Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate in phase one.
The FWA will be joined during phase two in April 2027 by the HMRC National Minimum Wage teams.
The Hidden Economy Team (HET) is being established within the FWA to target businesses that are hiding in plain sight - operating visibly in our communities while systematically breaching multiple regulations – aka ‘permissive non-compliance’. These businesses often have overlapping issues including employment rights violations and other regulatory non-compliance.
Initially, the HET will focus on Hand Car Washes, under Operation PUCE, where research shows operations across the country aren't properly registered for PAYE/VAT. Many of these businesses exploit vulnerable workers through minimum wage violations, excessive working hours and poor conditions.
In the news (external websites)
'I was trapped': Modern slavery rises across London
Woman jailed after keeping young girl as ‘house slave’ for 25 years
‘She didn’t want me to hug her’: carer of enslaved woman describes her recovery
Modern slavery arrest and Class A drugs seized in Oxford
Sheffield charity Causeway launches online tool to fight modern slavery
Salvation Army team skydive for modern slavery survivors
Beyond Epstein: a defining moment for accountability
Free Training Opportunities
Modern Slavery
This free course is designed to develop an understanding of the international system of human rights protection in relation to modern slavery, but also encourage an appreciation of the influence of International Human Rights Law on the development of the domestic system of human rights protection.
To access the course, please visit:
Free course - Modern Slavery (external website)
Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking in the United Kingdom: Know it, see it and respond
Learn the myths and facts of modern slavery and human trafficking in the UK. You will learn what makes some people more vulnerable than others to being victimized by a trafficker; the industries, places and situations that are often leveraged by perpetrators for exploitation and most importantly how you can spot the signs and take action.
To sign up for the training, please visit:
Hope for Justice - Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking in the United Kingdom(external website)