Case study
Modern Slavery
A tenancy of an apartment within the Black Country was
offered and accepted by a single female “D”, following
a homelessness application from a Local Authority. Her
Housing Options Interview made us aware that she had
been the victim of Modern Slavery for eighteen years within
her in-laws home, after arriving in the United Kingdom from
Pakistan to marry.
Her relationship with her in-laws was to serve them; this
ended abruptly when her husband asked her to leave
the home, so that he could continue different female
relationships. “D” earned money working from home,
sewing; all money earned was taken from her each month.
Although “D” had lived in the United Kingdom for over
eighteen years, her in -laws and husband had prevented
her from learning English. “D” had tried to teach herself
through the reliance on TV and radio but on her application
for housing we had to use the skills of colleagues who
could speak and write in Punjabi. “D” was not allowed out
of the family home unless accompanied and had little or
no knowledge of any wider offer within the community in
relation to leisure and shopping.
Since “D” has been rehoused she has been able to continue
to work from her own home and through support from
our Financial Skills Team, has a Universal Credit claim in
payment. She is managing her tenancy independantly and
has enrolled on a local course to learn how to read, write
and speak English. Our accommodation offer and ongoing
support is allowing “D” to start a new and independent life.
Update on
Modern Slavery Policy:
The Modern Slavery Act 2015 consolidates previous
offences relating to trafficking and slavery and from
October 2015, the Transparency in Supply Chains Provisions
required businesses with a turnover above £36 million
to publish an annual statement. Accord’s inaugural
statement was published on 31st March 2016 and it is
reviewed and re-published annually. To support this, we
have adopted a policy on Modern Slavery and we complete
risk assessments based on spend analysis with our main
suppliers, provide training and raise awareness amongst
suppliers and colleagues who manage the contracts to
ensure we help eradicate potential slavery from our supply
chains.
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