Record high modern slavery referrals ‘shows shocking scale’ of issue in UK
Greater London was the area where exploitation in the UK was most commonly said to have occurred, followed by the West Midlands.
A record high of almost 20,000 potential victims of modern slavery were referred into the system last year – a rise of 13% in 12 months.
A total of 19,125 potential victims in the UK were referred to the Home Office in 2024, up from 16,990 the previous year.
The Home Office said last year’s figure is the highest in a year since the National Referral Mechanism began in 2009.
To access support and have recognition of their circumstances in the UK, victims of slavery and human trafficking have to be assessed under the NRM.
The Government said that, for the first year, the number of people referred who said they had been exploited overseas was higher than the number saying they had faced exploitation in the UK.
While 43% (8,268) of potential victims said they were exploited exclusively in the UK, the number was slightly higher, at 8,372 or 44%, for those who said they were exploited exclusively overseas.
The overseas exploitation was most commonly reported to have happened in Libya (named in 3,212 of referrals), Albania (1,294) and Vietnam (1,049).
Last year in the UK, Greater London was the area where exploitation was most commonly said to have occurred – named in 2,661 of referrals – followed by the West Midlands (842) and Greater Manchester (549).
Overall around three in 10 of referrals were children, at 31% down from 35% the previous year.
Almost three quarters of all referrals – both adults and children – were male (74% or 14,157) and 26% (4,937) were female.
Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner Eleanor Lyons said the record figures show the “shocking scale of modern slavery in our country”.
She said: “Each number represents a person subjected to unimaginable suffering.
“While the increase in referrals partly reflects improved awareness, it also highlights the shocking scale of modern slavery in our country.
“We are identifying only a fraction of victims, with estimates suggesting over 100,000 individuals affected in the UK.”
The most common nationality of potential victims was British – making up 23% or 4,441, and down slightly from 25% in the previous year.
Albanian was the next most common nationality (13% or 2,492), followed by Vietnamese (11% or 2,153).
The majority (75% or 3,335) of UK nationals referred were children, the Home Office said.
Ms Lyons said: “These figures reinforce a crucial point: modern slavery is a crime against individuals and must not be conflated with immigration offences.
“As in previous years, by far the highest number of potential victims are for British nationals. The focus must remain on protecting those at risk, regardless of nationality.”
People trafficking, forced labour, criminal exploitation and sexual exploitation are all considered forms of modern slavery.
In October, the Government made a commitment to “eradicate” the backlog of decisions on modern slavery cases by the end of 2026, announcing 200 extra staff have been hired to speed up processing.
The latest official figures, published last week, showed that as of February 17, there were 15,301 cases awaiting conclusive grounds decisions – down 39% compared to the same time a year ago and down 48% from the peak of 29,275 in late 2022.
