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It’s time to stop slavery – our new campaign

Unseen is working with other charities to raise awareness and ban products tainted by modern slavery. Find out more and sign the petition.
Car wash sign - It's time to stop slavery

Unseen has joined forces with 16 other anti-slavery organisations on a new campaign to mark Anti-Slavery Day 2022, “Time to Stop Slavery”. 

Working together under the banner of the Coalition to Stop Slavery the group is aiming for the new campaign to:

  • bring about a major change in public awareness of modern slavery, by educating people about the signs of modern slavery and how to report any concerns of modern slavery and human trafficking. 
  • urge the Government to ban the import of all products tainted by forced labour and modern slavery.

     

Central to the campaign are two new commercials that have been made by the team behind the famous John Lewis Christmas ads.  

You can check them out on the new Coalition website.

Coalition to stop slavery
What you can do to help stop slavery 

As well as learning to spot the signs of slavery yourself, there are two easy things you can do to support the campaign.  

1) Please follow the Coalition social media, like and share its posts, and encourage friends and family to follow, like and share too. 

Here are the links to the Coalition to Stop Slavery social media:  
Instagram: stopslavery_co  
Facebook: endallexploitation  
Twitter: @StopSlavery_Co 

2) Sign the new petition urging the Government to ban all products tainted by forced labour: https://coalitiontostopslavery.org/sign-the-petition 

Slavery isn't obvious - it's time to put an end to slavery

“Modern slavery is a crime hidden in plain sight that affects around 100,000 people in the UK and 50 million worldwide,” says Andrew Wallis, Unseen CEO and a spokesperson for the Coalition.  

“It’s happening in our communities, on our streets, it’s also present in the everyday products we all buy.  

“The good news is that we can all do things to help stop it – from urging the Government to ban the import of all products tainted by forced labour, to learning to spot the signs of exploitation and raise concerns safely through the UK Modern Slavery & Exploitation Helpline.” 

Find out more about the Coalition and sign the petition at www.coalitiontostopslavery.org

Time to Stop slavery campaign

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Justine Currell

As I came to understand more about the issue, including through a visit to an Unseen safehouse, I knew I needed to do more to stop this abuse and exploitation.

For the last five years of my Civil Service career, I was the Modern Slavery Senior Policy Advisor in the Home Office and led on development of the Modern Slavery Act, including the transparency in supply chains provision and business guidance.

I joined Unseen to lead the development of the Modern Slavery & Exploitation Helpline, and Unseen’s work with businesses. I am regularly called upon to present at national and international conferences and use my experience of working with Ministers to influence other governments internationally to take action to address modern slavery and, in particular, business supply chain issues.

In my spare time I enjoy keeping fit, music, reading and travelling.

Andrew Wallis

What ultimately compelled me to act was a report on how people from Eastern Europe were being trafficked through Bristol airport to the USA. Kate Garbers, who went on to be an Unseen Director, and I wrote to all the city councillors, MPs and the Police Chief Constable challenging them on the issue. The challenge came back to us: this city needs safe housing for trafficked women. And so Unseen began.

But we never wanted Unseen to be just about safe housing. We wanted to end slavery once and for all, and that remains our driving focus.

I chaired the working group for the Centre for Social Justice’s landmark report “It Happens Here: Equipping the United Kingdom to Fight Modern Slavery”. This is now acknowledged as the catalyst behind the UK’s Modern Slavery Act of 2015. It was a great honour to be awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours that year. On the other hand, I’ve also been described as “the loveliest disrupter you could ever hope to meet”.

This job has taken me from building flat-pack furniture for safehouses, to working with businesses to address slavery in supply chains, to delivering training, raising awareness and advising governments around the world.

When not at work, I enjoy travelling, spending time with my dog Harley, cooking, supporting Liverpool and Yorkshire CC, music (I’m a former DJ) and endurance events such as the Three Peaks Challenge and Tribe Freedom Runs – which I vow never to do again. Until the next time.