Hope for Justice

Hope for Justice is a charity working to bring freedom from human trafficking and modern slavery with an effective and proven multi-disciplinary model. We have active programmes in the UK, USA, Ethiopia and Uganda, reaching approximately 200,000 adults and children a year.

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supporters@hopeforjustice.org

0300 008 8000

Registered charity no. 1126097

Member since November 2019

Latest News

‘She was left in limbo’ – breakthrough for slavery victim seeking home and security

A victim of trafficking who was exploited for three years has received indefinite leave to remain in the UK in the form of settled status.

The woman, in her 40s, was trafficked into the UK from another European country and forced to work for little or no pay. She has been a victim of human trafficking and of forced labour, working in factories, on farms and cleaning, all the while having her wages taken from her.

Changes to the government’s welfare system in 2014 drastically restricted her access to any financial provision, and without clear immigration status she was “left in limbo”, with no access to income, accommodation or support.

The woman was referred to global anti-slavery charity Hope for Justice, who have been providing legal advice and advocacy for the victim ever since.

One of the charity’s advocates, who has led on the work, said: “This woman has endured years of hardship. She has had very little stability and was incredibly vulnerable. The systems in the UK had never been fully explained to her and she had never received the right support. She experienced a long period of homelessness and when we first met with her she had been stuck in limbo for a number of years.”

Since Hope for Justice became aware of the victim, the charity’s Independent Modern Slavery Advocate (IMSA) – who ensure that survivor’s legal rights and entitlements are upheld – has interceded on her behalf on a near-daily basis. Work has involved liaising with the council, with an accommodation provider, with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and solicitors, among others.

The IMSA said: “Receiving her settled status has been a big breakthrough. While there is still more work to be done, this is a huge step forward in her case, which will help us to secure her accommodation and financial stability in the UK going forward.”

Threatened with a hammer for daring to speak up against his trafficker

Andrius* had a difficult and disrupted childhood, surrounded by alcoholism, violence and, sadly, suicide. He ended up in the care system in his home country in the Baltics.

A flatmate, someone he thought of as a friend, moved to the UK and then urged Andrius to come over and join him, promising a good job paying £300 a week, free accommodation and food. He even arranged his minibus travel.

The reality was grimly different. Andrius was made to work 50-60 hour weeks delivering charity leaflets and collection bags. He did not control his own wages – they were paid to his ‘friend’ who then gave him occasional cash handouts, with deductions made for travel and other things – despite the initial promise that these would be free for Andrius.

He had to sleep on the floor in a filthy house. It was completely different to what he had been promised and what he had imagined, and he made clear he would never have come if he had known the truth.

He tried to stand up for himself, but things kept getting worse – he was told he owed more money, that he needed to pay for drugs and alcohol that his friend had bought that Andrius didn’t even want, and then he started to be locked in the house or told he couldn’t leave. He was threatened, sometimes even with a hammer. He felt controlled, exploited and intimidated. He had no phone and didn’t know how to get help, as he felt too embarrassed to share the truth with any of the other workers.

One of the reasons he tried to put up with situation at first was his fear of ending up homeless, but as things got worse, he realised even this would be preferable to what he was enduring.

So when he managed to escape one day, he ended up on the streets for a few weeks. This was when one of Hope for Justice’s charity partners discovered him and contacted us, having spotted the signs of trafficking. The charity workers had previously received Hope for Justice training, so they knew what to look out for.

Andrius struggled to trust anyone or to disclose what happened to him. He was frightened and in a bad way physically and emotionally, with ripped and torn clothes and shoes, and barely any possessions.

Hope for Justice’s West Yorkshire Hub and our partners explained the support he could receive, as well as helping him with essentials like food and emergency accommodation.

He wanted to report his case to the police and consented to be referred into the National Referral Mechanism for safe house support, but unfortunately at first received a ‘negative’ decision.

Our team believed what Andrius told us, and so we worked to overturn this decision. With additional evidence and clarifications, fortunately this was successful – he received a positive decision, entitling him to safe house support while the authorities assess his case ahead of an eventual ‘conclusive grounds’ decision about what happened to him.

Andrius has said how thankful he is for all our help, and for the support he is receiving at the safe house, where our team have been visiting him and helping him with supermarket vouchers.

*Name and image changed to protect identity

Hope for Justice wins Charity of the Year at the .ORG Impact Awards

PHOTO: Tim Nelson (CEO, Hope for Justice) accepting the .ORG Charity of the Year award at the .ORG Impact Awards. Photo credit to Public Interest Registry.

Hope for Justice is thrilled to announce that we have been recognised as .ORG Charity of the Year at this year’s prestigious .ORG Impact Awards, an annual program that honors and celebrates outstanding mission-driven organizations and individuals working to make the world a better place, held in Washington DC by the Public Interest Registry.

Hope for Justice was chosen as the winner of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion category, and also named .ORG of the Year. Selected from almost 1,000 applicants from over 70 countries, Hope for Justice was then chosen from the seven category award winners and announced as .ORG of the Year live at a Washington D.C. awards ceremony after being shortlisted to 25 from 1000 applicants, globally.

This recognition signifies and celebrates Hope for Justice’s relentless efforts and impact within the field. Alongside this honour, a substantial prize of $40,000 was awarded to further support our initiatives and aid in our ongoing endeavours. As well as winning the overall award, we also won our individual category for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with a further prize of $10,000. The significance of this accolade has led to an invitation for our CEO Tim Nelson to attend a meeting at the White House next year, to further discuss the recognition of Hope for Justice’s impactful work.

Jon Nevett, President and CEO of Public Interest Registry, said: “We are honoured to recognize our 2023 .ORG Impact Award winners, who hail from communities across the globe and tackle incredible challenges with grit, innovation, and commitment to making the world a better place. These inspiring organizations and individuals work tirelessly to create positive change and improve lives each day. We are thrilled to uplift their efforts and humbled by the work they are doing to build a bright future for us all. Congratulations, and thank you for being a part of our .ORG Community.”

Tim Nelson, CEO for Hope for Justice, said: “I want to accept this on behalf of all the amazing staff and teams that we have internationally who go to the ends of the earth to try and find individuals, and see those individuals set free from everything that has happened to them.The recognition that both these awards provide is a testament to the incredible work our team has tirelessly contributed to over the years. I must express my deepest gratitude to each member of our team for their unwavering dedication and commitment to our cause without whom we would not be able to work so tirelessly in our endeavours to end slavery and change lives. It was a humbling experience to be in a room of so many highly reputed organisations, all doing work to make our world a better place. This remarkable achievement is not just an award; it is a testament to our collective dedication and unwavering commitment to combatting modern slavery and transforming lives. Knowing that our work is making a profound impact and resonating on a global scale makes us incredibly proud.” A huge thank you to Jon Nevett, Judy (Haejoo) Song-Marshell, the .ORG community and the entire Public Interest Registry team for this award! We are honoured to be a part of the .ORG Community.

About us

Hope for Justice is a charity working to bring an end to modern slavery with an effective and proven multi-disciplinary model. Founded in the UK in 2008, Hope for Justice has grown to become an international organisation with programmes reaching 200,000 adults and children each year. Our wholly owned social enterprise, Slave-Free Alliance, provides services to companies and public bodies seeking to protect their operations and supply chains against the risks of modern slavery and labour exploitation.

Our programmes in detail

Advocacy Our team of Independent Modern Slavery Advocates (IMSAs) provide independent socio-legal advocacy that ensures survivors of modern slavery and human trafficking can make informed choices about their entitlements and recovery. IMSAs provide advocacy that is person-led and trauma-informed, because many survivors have complex advocacy needs. This service is not time-limited. The IMSAs also run an Advice Service accessible by individual survivors and/or professionals working with survivors.
Training We offer accredited training to those who may come into contact with victims and survivors. We offer short basic awareness training as well as longer, in-depth courses on modern slavery (including trauma-informed case reporting and disclosure encounter) for practitioners. We offer instructor-led courses, plus modules that can be done in trainees’ own time via our online Learning Academy.
Policy Policy as a function at Hope for Justice is the process of initiating and strengthening legislation, processes, practices, standards, structures, knowledge, beliefs and behaviour. Our policy team work to ensure the UK’s international obligations are upheld and domestic legal frameworks (legislation, policy, strategy and practice) reflect those obligations, are human rights based, survivor-centred, trauma-informed and ultimately strengthened to ensure long-term sustainability. Policy informs practice, and practice informs policy.
Outreach Our specialist teams engage with vulnerable adults and children in the community. We help children and teenagers out of dangerous and vulnerable circumstances, such as living alone on the streets, and encourage them to join our Lighthouse centres for safe shelter, counselling, educational opportunities, fun activities and eventually, reintegration or transition to independent living. With adults, our teams use community engagement, cultural knowledge and language skills to connect with vulnerable populations and individuals, or begin the process of a rescue out of exploitation.
Investigations In the USA, Hope for Justice has three teams of trained former law enforcement officers who are licensed private investigators. They determine if a case meets the definition required by law to charge someone with the human trafficking statute. Investigators help identify victims, gather intelligence about suspected traffickers, and share that information with law enforcement to aid in victim recovery and rescue.
Safe aftercare – adults In North Carolina, we are providing holistic, trauma-informed aftercare for survivors through our new RISE Program (Restore, Inspire, Strengthen, and Empower): an integrated suite of services that contributes to the sustainable improvement of the wellbeing, safety, and self-sufficiency of survivors. We do this through trauma-informed care and support, community engagement, clinical therapy and comprehensive individualised case management, including connecting survivors to services in the local community. We walk alongside them each step of the way, advocating on their behalf and guiding them through the social services and legal systems.
Community prevention
Our community prevention programmes are in Uganda and Ethiopia. They are designed to strengthen families, communities and systems to prevent children separating from their families and from being trafficked, exploited or enslaved. They tackle root causes, such as poverty, family stress, peer pressure on children to abandon their families to seek new opportunities, and attitudes viewing children as economic assets. Projects include: • Self-Help Groups: • Child Protection Clubs
• Community Awareness Raising: • Child Protection Committees: • Youth Training:. • Community Conversations
Transitional care – children (Lighthouses)
Our Lighthouses provide temporary care and support for vulnerable and exploited children, keeping them safe from the dangers of the streets or their previous circumstances as we work to assess their physical, mental and emotional health and their circumstances. Our Lighthouses offer individual and group counselling, catch-up education and life skills training. Older children and teenagers get vocational training to develop employment skills.
Family reintegration – children (Lighthouses)
While children are being cared for at our Lighthouses, we work to trace their families when possible, and consider how best to safely return them back to their families or to family-based care. We support families to prevent children separating from them again. Reintegration to biological or extended families is only considered when they can provide safe care and where any risk of re-trafficking or re-exploitation is low, as assessed by our case managers. The child must be an active participant in the decision. Where family reintegration is unsafe or impossible, other options include specialised long-time care with another agency, or independent living combined with vocational and business skills.