Bedford Borough Councillor Kristy Adams was at Bedford River Festival at the weekend to hand out bookmarks to help the public identify victims of modern slavery. This was part of an initiative by the Bedfordshire Against Modern Slavery (BAMS) group to raise awareness of the issue.
The bookmarks contain a checklist of signs to look out for when spotting someone who may have been the victim of modern slavery. This can mean that they are being held against their will for purposes such as sexual exploitation, forced labour or domestic servitude.
Since BAMS was formed by Cllr Adams, Nigel Tompkins and Soroptomists Pauline Panter and Rita Beaumont in 2012, victim reporting rates have increased by over 400% in Bedfordshire. This follows the training of frontline workers in organisations including the Police and Fire Service in how to identify and report victims. BAMS brings together partners including charities, the Police and Fire Service and officers from local councils.
Cllr Adams has discussed the issue on BBC Radio 4 and last year she brought together local community groups and organisations to discuss the issue at a seminar.
The River Festival also saw an impressive performance by the Lifebox Theatre Company who acted out the real life stories of 2 people who had been trafficked.
Following the River Festival, Cllr Adams said:
‘Modern Slavery is happening in our cities, towns and villages. More people are trapped in slavery now than were victims when William Wilberforce and the abolitionists were alive. As a society we need to do much more to raise awareness of modern slavery and that is the aim of Bedfordshire Against Modern Slavery. And we need more prosecutions of criminals who commit this crime that steals the freedom and safety of victims. In Bedfordshire our Lead Officer for Modern Slavery is DCI David Cestaro, a first class police officer who has provided quality training and online resources for all officers across the county.
‘The Bedford River Festival was positive in that we managed to speak to a lot of people about this issue who may not necessarily have talked about it before. The performance by the Lifebox Theatre Company also really brought to life the suffering caused to individuals who have been trafficked.’
The bookmark can be seen as an attachment to this article.