Fleeing conflict to safety

Abstract

This chapter considers those who have fled conflict and come to the UK but who have not experienced modern slavery, reflecting on whether they remained safe because of UK government policies, or despite them. Two methods are highlighted through which the respondents who did not experience modern slavery were kept safe from it: the support of the government and statutory agencies, and the support of strangers and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). While discussions of the former exemplify ways in which government structures can be successful in identifying and protecting potentially vulnerable people, discussions of the latter relate to situations in which those systems can fail and whereby the respondents remained safe only through interventions by strangers or NGOs.