Child Trafficking in the UK 2024: a snapshot

A new report from ECPAT UK and the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner reveals the UK is failing to protect trafficked children, with systemic barriers preventing them from receiving the care and justice they deserve. Despite a 138% rise in child trafficking cases over five years and British children accounting for 78% of referrals to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in 2023, critical legal and policy gaps persist.

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CLICK HERE TO READ the Executive Summary.

Latest

Joint response to the King's Speech announcement of reforms to the modern slavery framework

Following the announcement In the King's Speech that the new Immigration and Asylum Bill will include reforms to the modern slavery legislative framework, leading organisations and experts warn the government that it cannot end human trafficking and modern slavery without a safeguarding-first response to all victims and survivors that shifts the balance of risk decisively onto traffickers
Child Trafficking Survivors Warn: Government Proposals Will Put Vulnerable Children at Risk

The ECPAT UK Youth Advisory Group has issued a strong response to the King’s Speech with the announcement of a new Immigration and Asylum Bill as part of the government’s ongoing plans to reform the asylum and immigration system. The group raises the alarm about the impact on child victims of trafficking of major changes which will make identification and protection of victims harder.
An Overview of Child Trafficking, Modern Slavery & Exploitation

This online course provides a detailed overview of child trafficking, modern slavery and exploitation in the UK, supporting practitioners to identify and effectively safeguard child victims.
ECPAT UK welcomes GRETA’s Fourth Evaluation Report and urges Government to act on urgent child‑specific recommendations

ECPAT UK welcomes the publication of the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) Fourth Evaluation Round report on the United Kingdom, which delivers urgent and detailed child‑focused recommendations for the United Kingdom. GRETA’s report draws significantly on ECPAT UK’s research, reflecting our long‑standing evidence of systemic failures in the UK’s response to child trafficking and exploitation.

Until Harm Ends: An update report on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK

A new report from ECPAT UK and Missing People reveals significant issues with child victims of trafficking and unaccompanied children going missing from care.
More than Words: how definitions impact on the UK’s response to child trafficking and exploitation

This report highlights how overlaps and gaps in terminology, and how they have created confusion and definitional instabilitythat hinders effective identification and intervention. These inconsistencies impact frontline practice, from safeguarding to policing and prosecution, resulting in missed opportunities to protect children from harm.
UK Government Urged to Act on Trafficked Children’s Rights Amid Systemic Failures

On Human Rights Day, a new report from ECPAT UK and the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner reveals the UK is failing to protect trafficked children, with systemic barriers preventing them from receiving the care and justice they deserve.
Behind Closed Doors: A Storytelling Legal and Empirical Analysis of Human Trafficking Risks in Home Office Hotels Compared to Other Accommodation for Unaccompanied Children and Young People Seeking Asylum in the UK

New report by University of College London (UCL) and ECPAT UK aimed to investigate the risks of trafficking and exploitation in Home Office child hotels among unaccompanied children seeking asylum in the UK. Researchers interviewed young people themselves as well as professionals such as social workers, policy stakeholders, academics, lawyers, law enforcement, support workers, and NGO staff.
VIDEO EVENT - Prevention and identification of children and young adults experiencing, or at risk of, modern slavery in the UK.

Launch event of our latest report, ‘Prevention and identification of children and young adults experiencing, or at risk of, modern slavery in the UK', with ECPAT UK and Rights Lab on 26 February 2024.
Prevention and identification of children and young adults experiencing, or at risk of, modern slavery in the UK.

New research report reveals the alarming reality of child modern slavery in the UK and calls for urgent action to protect children and young people.
Creating Stable Futures final report: Human Trafficking, Participation and Outcomes for Children

This interim report summarises the main findings from a participatory research study based on the voices of young people who have experience of modern slavery, aiming to understand what positive outcomes for these young people would look like. The research was led by the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University, the University of Bedfordshire’s Institute of Applied Social Research, in partnership with ECPAT UK.
Creating Stable Futures: Human trafficking, participation and outcomes for children

This interim report summarises the main findings from a participatory research study based on the voices of young people who have experience of modern slavery, aiming to understand what positive outcomes for these young people would look like. The research was led by the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University, the University of Bedfordshire’s Institute of Applied Social Research, in partnership with ECPAT UK.
Outside the frame: Unaccompanied children denied care and protection

New data obtained via a Freedom of Information (FOI) request shows that 45 unaccompanied children in the UK went missing in between June 2021 and March 2022 after the Home Secretary unlawfully placed them in Home Office-led hotel accommodation.
When Harm Remains: an update report on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK

'When Harm Remains: an update report on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK' follows up on ECPAT UK’s and Missing People’s first study, 'Heading Back to Harm' (which discovered that an alarmingly high number of children go missing from care with many never being found), and our second study, 'Still in Harm’s Way', which confirmed the findings that trafficked and unaccompanied children are amongst those at greatest risk of going missing in the UK.

What is child trafficking?
Child trafficking statistics

The latest data on the number of victims of trafficking in the UK and worldwide.
National Referral Mechanism

The National Referral Mechanism is a process set up by the Government to identify and support victims of trafficking in the UK. It was born out of the Government's obligation to identify victims under the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Human Trafficking, which came into force on 1 February 2008.
Volunteer

ECPAT UK relies on committed volunteers to support the work that we do. Without their help, we would not be able to campaign as effectively against child exploitation.
The Secret Gardeners: New film on child trafficking from Vietnam

The Secret Gardeners aims to inform professionals about the plight of children who are forced by organised crime gangs to grow drugs in houses across the UK but who often face criminalisation and prison.
Our team

ECPAT UK's team has more than 30 years' experience working on issues of child trafficking, child protection, child sexual exploitation, unaccompanied children, modern slavery and more.
About us

ECPAT UK is a leading children's rights organisation working to protect children from child trafficking and transnational child exploitation. We support children everywhere to uphold their rights and to live a life free from abuse and exploitation.
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty that grants all children and young people (aged 17 and under) a comprehensive set of rights. The UK signed the Convention on 19 April 1990, ratified it on 16 December 1991 and it came into force on 15 January 1992.
Contact us

If you have an immediate concern about a child's welfare, please contact your local council's social care department, who are available 24 hours a day. For all other enquiries related to our work, contact [email protected] or call 020 7607 2136.
United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocols Thereto (including the Palermo Protocol)

The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocols Thereto is the main international legal instrument in the fight against transnational organised crime, including human trafficking.

More than Words: how definitions impact on the UK’s response to child trafficking and exploitation

This report highlights how overlaps and gaps in terminology, and how they have created confusion and definitional instabilitythat hinders effective identification and intervention. These inconsistencies impact frontline practice, from safeguarding to policing and prosecution, resulting in missed opportunities to protect children from harm. Read more

ECPAT UK welcomes GRETA’s Fourth Evaluation Report and urges Government to act on urgent child‑specific recommendations

ECPAT UK welcomes the publication of the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) Fourth Evaluation Round report on the United Kingdom, which delivers urgent and detailed child‑focused recommendations for the United Kingdom. GRETA’s report draws significantly on ECPAT UK’s research, reflecting our long‑standing evidence of systemic failures in the UK’s response to child trafficking and exploitation. Read more