Commissioner and Chief Constable support pledge to stamp out modern slavery

Police and Crime Commissioner, Darryl Preston has re-confirmed his commitment to eliminating modern slavery alongside Chief Constable Nick Dean.

The Commissioner and Chief Constable signed the refreshed Modern Slavery Statement at a Topping Out Ceremony for the Constabulary's new police station in Milton, Cambridge on Friday 9^th May.

Their joint commitment was reinforced at the Commissioner’s recent Business Coordination Board meeting – the regular mechanism through which the Commissioner holds the Chief Constable to account.

The statement sets out the actions the force will take to ensure there is no modern slavery or human trafficking, forced labour or exploitation in its own business or its supply chain. 

At the meeting, the Commissioner acknowledged the outstanding support provided to victims of such crimes in the county by the Constabulary-run Victim and Witness Hub.

“Sadly, modern slavery very much exists in our county and people still find themselves becoming victims,” said Darryl.

“Many people don’t understand that they are a victim of crime until someone has explained to them that they are being exploited. Seeking support can be a difficult thing for a migrant victim of exploitation as they may have been threatened or had their family threatened by the people exploiting them.

“If you suspect that someone may be a victim of trafficking or exploitation, support is available through Cambridgeshire’s Victim and Witness Hub.”

Staff at the Hub are funded by the Commissioner as part of his model of victim support services.

Chief Constable Nick Dean said: “Tackling modern slavery is a truly horrendous crime and targeting those responsible remains a priority for the force.

“We have seen examples of people being living in appalling conditions and having wages stolen from them at the hands of these offenders and we will be relentless in our efforts to stop this.

It’s crucial for everyone to be aware of the signs of modern slavery, and we encourage anyone to report if they see something that doesn’t look right. We would much rather attend the premises and discover everything is legitimate than have a victim of slavery trapped in a terrible situation.”

Both the Chief Constable and Commissioner signed the statement at an event held to mark important progress at the new Milton Police Station.

Steve Kitchen, Delivery Director at Willmott Dixon said:

“We very much support the Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable’s commitment to eliminating modern slavery and have robust anti-modern slavery polices and processes in place to tackle this on our sites.”

A copy of the signed statement can be found here: 25-04-28-bcb-8-agenda-item-8---cambridgeshire-constabulary-msht-statement.pdf.

For more information on support offered victims of modern slavery, please visit the Cambridgeshire Victim Services website: www.cambsvictimservices.co.uk.

For more information on spotting the signs of modern slavery, visit Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s website.