Survivors of Trafficking and Exploitation 

All local authorities in Scotland have legal duties to identify, protect and assist people who are survivors/victims of human trafficking and exploitation.¹³⁶

This chapter sets out what local authorities must consider when they suspect a child or adult may be a victim of human trafficking and exploitation, and what to do when a victim is subject to the NRPF condition and requires accommodation or support.

18.1 Human Trafficking in Scotland

Human trafficking and exploitation in Scotland is often referred to as crime that is ‘hidden in plain sight’, with widespread acceptance that the incidence and scale of human trafficking is as yet unknown, due to underreporting and a lack of familiarity by many people of the many forms that human trafficking can take. Many people in Scotland think that human trafficking is a crime mostly confined to major cities; however, victims of human trafficking and exploitation have been found in every Scottish local authority, in urban and many rural areas.

All local authorities in Scotland are required to protect and assist potential victims and survivors of human trafficking, and should have protocols in place for identifying potential victims and signposting them to appropriate services. Potential victims may be British citizens and whilst a social work response will not require to take into account restrictions on access to support based on migration status, there are other supports which they are eligible to receive.

Some potential victims will be subject to immigration control and could have no recourse to public funds (NRPF). Local authorities may therefore need to consider their obligations to provide accommodation and support, as part of a wider package of support needs.

National Guidance COSLA published national guidance in 2019 to support Scottish local authorities to develop good practice to identify, refer and support potential victims of human trafficking and exploitation.

You can download that guidance here: COSLA Human Trafficking and Exploitation Guidance – October 2019 (PDF, 926kb)

You can also access these toolkit resources which include: National Referral Mechanism: Toolkit for First Responders Common potential indicators of human trafficking and exploitation poster Commonly held myths Annotated case studies Two-sided quick reference factsheets for frontline staff and managers Editable referral and support protocol flowchart

In addition, Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland (SOHTIS) provides a second-tier advice service to assist local authorities to develop good practice, identify potential victims and to navigate the complexities of their initial recovery and assessment.

18.2 National Referral Mechanism (NRM)

The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is a UK-wide framework for identifying potential victims of human trafficking and exploitation and ensuring they receive the appropriate support.

A potential victim of human trafficking and exploitation in Scotland can only be referred to the NRM by a ‘First Responder’.

In Scotland the following organisations are First Responders for purposes of the NRM:

• Local Authorities
• Police Scotland
• British Transport Police
• UK Government Agencies – UKVI, Border Force and Immigration Enforcement
• Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance (TARA)
• Migrant Help
• Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA)

For further guidance on a Local Authority’s duties as a First Responder, refer to the joint Scottish toolkit here: National Referral Mechanism: Toolkit for First Responders

Adult potential victims of human trafficking and exploitation must provide informed consent for a referral to be made, and best practice includes providing access to information, and early confidential legal advice, if necessary, about the decision to consent, before entering the NRM process.

Consent is not required if the potential victim is a child (under 18 years); however, it is still important to ensure early access to legal advice so that children and young people understand the consequences of identification, and how to effectively participate and make informed decisions during the evidence gathering process.

Local authorities should have established protocols to identify and refer potential child victims of trafficking under the NRM – this obligation falls within child protection duties of local authorities and should also therefore be taken within the relevant frameworks.

When a referral is made to the NRM, the Single Competent Authority (SCA) will make an initial determination as to whether there are “reasonable grounds” to believe the individual is a potential victim of trafficking (the ‘Reasonable Grounds’ decision). If the Reasonable Grounds decision is positive, the individual is eligible to receive a minimum of 90 days’ support.

For more information about the NRM process in for adults in Scotland, see Home Office guidance: National Referral Mechanism Guidance: Adults (N Ireland and Scotland)

18.3 Local Authority Duties and NRM Support

Local authority duties towards potential victims of human trafficking and exploitation who require support are the same as those outlined in previous chapters towards NRPF individuals and families, with some additional considerations which require to be taken into account.

It is important to recognise that these duties arise as soon as statutory obligations are triggered, and are not dependent upon a potential victim’s or survivor’s subsequent decision to enter into the NRM identification framework (or choice not to do so).

As mentioned above, if adult potential victims do choose to enter the NRM, and they receive a positive Reasonable Grounds decision, they are entitled to an alternate statutory form of support (NRM support) for a temporary period of time. However, adult potential victims are not required to enter the NRM – and if they exercise their right to choose not to, they may require support and assistance from local authority social services.

It may also be the case that a potential victim of trafficking is engaging in two separate, but linked, legal processes: identification as a victim  of trafficking under the NRM and as a refugee in the asylum system. If so, the potential victim may be accommodated and supported in the asylum support system, whilst the asylum claim is pending. If, however, the asylum claim is fully refused, the potential victim of trafficking may require support and assistance from local authority social services, in the interim, or longer-term. In practice, being a potential victim of trafficking and also an asylum seeker can lead to a range of different entitlements and outcomes, depending on the stage the survivor has reached in each legal process, and the decisions (positive or negative) received at each stage.

Finally, victims of trafficking who receive a positive conclusive decision from the SCA may apply for a discretionary grant of limited leave to remain, in the form of a renewable residence permit (which may or may not be subject to the NRPF  condition). Again, a potential victim’s requirements or support and accommodation from the local  authority may need to be assessed or re-assessed at each stage of the legal process, depending on their specific needs and circumstances.

18.4 Adults

Adult potential victims of human trafficking and exploitation who receive a positive Reasonable Grounds decision from the NRM are eligible to receive a minimum of 90 days’ crisis support and accommodation.

The Scottish Government also funds additional long term support beyond the 90-day period for survivors of human trafficking in Scotland.

The following organisations provide support to adult potential victims and survivors of human
trafficking and exploitation:

• Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance (TARA) – for adult female victims of commercial sexual exploitation only¹³⁷
• Migrant Help – for all other adult victims of human trafficking or exploitation¹³⁸
• Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland (SOHTIS) – long-term support for any adult survivor of human trafficking beyond the 90-day period or those not entering the NRM, and second-tier advice to local authorities¹³⁹
• Local Authorities – providing guidance, accommodation and support for certain vulnerable adults under statutory duties
• The support and assistance available to potential victims and survivors may
  include (but is not limited to):
• Accommodation
• Day to day living
• Medical advice and treatment (including psychological assessment and treatment)
• Language translation and interpretation
• Counselling
• Legal advice
• Information about other services available to the adult, including the Victim Navigators service at Police Scotland
• Safe repatriation

However, an individual may have other support needs, for example alcohol or substance dependence, or a mental health diagnosis, that NRM support may not meet these needs. In these cases, local authorities may require to do so under their statutory duties.

In addition, local authorities retain a statutory duty to assess risk and provide support in line with their safeguarding duties and adult protection legislation. Therefore, NRM support should be taken into account as a service for meeting needs, and reducing risk, for a temporary period, but is not a substitute for an independent local authority assessment of its own responsibilities towards potential victims and survivors in their area.

If NRM support ends, local authorities will then become responsible for accommodation and support, where statutory obligations are engaged. SOHTIS provides funded ongoing support to survivors of trafficking and exploitation, which local authorities may be able to access on behalf of survivors.

For more information, see:
9 Social services’ support – adults

18.5 Children

In Scotland, trafficking and exploitation of children is recognised as child abuse and triggers a child protection response. In similar terms to the principles set out above in working with adults, local authorities require to protect and support potentially trafficked children by working through existing child protection frameworks.

Local authorities and other statutory partners must provide guidance and support to all trafficked children as necessary. Where trafficked children are also separated, then the local authority will provide accommodation and support under Section 25 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995.

Child victims of trafficking should be referred to Guardianship Scotland, which is a specialist statutory service which provides Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ITCG) to all unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and  survivors of child trafficking who arrive in Scotland without their families.

18.6 Best Practice in Supporting Survivors of Human Trafficking

The following is an extract from COSLA’s Guidance for Scottish Local Authorities on supporting victims of Human Trafficking and Exploitation.

To achieve best practice in working with any victim of human trafficking, there are some key considerations that local authorities should take into account:

• Support must be trauma informed, human rights based and person-centred; NHS Education for Scotland have produced a Trauma Training Framework, designed to help workers across all parts of the Scottish workforce deliver trauma informed services. See Websites and Resources.
• If interpretation assistance is required, only use official interpreters, and consider whether an interpreter of specific gender is required. COSLA Migration Team’s Migrants’ Rights and Entitlements Guidance outlines key considerations when working with interpreters.
• Support should be culturally sensitive, taking into account cultural or religious requirements;
• Some individuals might have a heightened fear of authorities, particularly law enforcement bodies, and so attempts should be made to dispel fears and establish trust and rapport;
• Risk assessments and individual safety plans should be made around access to communications, contact with relatives or potential traffickers and freedom of movement;
• Owing to the impact of these crimes on an individual, the victim may not readily communicate verbally – look out for signs of non-verbal communication and body language;
• Keep a note of any communications with the victim, noting down any key details such as locations, nationalities, methods used by the perpetrator that might support an NRM referral and law enforcement agencies;
• Accommodation should be safe, secure and suitable, considering needs for gender-specific accommodation, and whether single or shared accommodation is appropriate;
• If a victim has committed a crime or an immigration offence as a result of being a victim of human trafficking or exploitation, don’t treat them as suspects – safeguarding and wellbeing of the victim are the priority. There are protections against inappropriate prosecution of victims of slavery and trafficking for crimes committed as part of, or resulting from, theirexploitation;
• Additional support provision might be required during, and beyond, NRM support, for example mental health support, legal advice, education for children and young people, ESOL, signposting to external support and well-being services.