Independent crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers is backing a new e-training programme that intends to educate both the general public and people in the workplace on human trafficking and recognising victims of this crime type. [09 Oct 2012]

The online course, called Human Trafficking Uncovered (HTU), is the result of a collaboration between  Nick Kinsella, acknowledged anti-trafficking specialist , in conjunction with The Sheffield College and Crimestoppers.

The course has been launched ahead of a new European Union directive that the UK has signed up to which comes into force in April 2013, and is a collaborative project involving a number of organisations, including Love146, all with the same goal of cutting the number of Human Trafficking crimes.

The Sheffield College, in South Yorkshire, has an award-winning reputation for delivering online courses nationally and internationally and will be responsible for running the course. Human Trafficking Uncovered is believed to be the first course of its kind to be online, developed and delivered by a further education college, and to receive certification.

The programme equips the public, professionals and businesses with the practical knowledge needed to recognise and react appropriately to help protect a trafficked person and take action to help catch those committing the offence. The modular based training programme which brings together the knowledge and expertise of renowned and respected specialists in combating human trafficking, allows employers to demonstrate their commitment to educating and training their employees on this subject.

The true extent of the problem is unknown due to the covert nature of the crime but it is believed that there are now more people in forms of modern day slavery than ever before. Statistics released by the UN earlier this year indicated that there are around 20 million victims of human trafficking at any one time globally, while the annual value of human trafficking is almost £20 billion ($32 Billion).

Crimestoppers’ mechanism for passing on information about crime anonymously is a big reason for its support for this course. It offers an outlet should you discover you have information about Human Trafficking offences. You can be safe in the knowledge that you can come to the charity, without having to reveal who you are, where you work, or where you live.

Crimestoppers has been fighting crime for almost 25 years, and it is raising awareness of crime through courses such as the one being run by The Sheffield College, that support its work with law enforcement agencies.

Rodger Holden, Director of Business Development for Crimestoppers said: “Crimestoppers is delighted to officially support this programme that goes a long way in helping raise awareness of human trafficking and what we can do to try and combat it. We will be launching a human trafficking campaign later this year so this online course offers a unique opportunity to help educate the UK public about this crime.

Nick Kinsella said: “Human trafficking is an extremely serious crime that attacks the dignity and undermines the fundamental human rights of its victims. Many people think of it as a remote issue, something that happens only abroad, but human trafficking is also a local issue and can be  happening right now in your streets and communities.  This course helps to dispel some myths on this subject including that UK nationals are not trafficked - they are.

"Everyone has a role to play in tackling human trafficking, helping to bring the criminals to justice and protect victims. This course aims to raise awareness amongst professionals and the general public, by providing a comprehensive understanding of the types of trafficking impacting on the UK, the growing response to the problem and by giving them the information on how to recognise the signs of human trafficking, what to do about it and how to report it.”

“By explaining the problem in an interesting and inter-active way I hope that this course will help to increase peoples understanding of the issue and therefore lead to greater prevention of the crime and protection of the vulnerable.”

If you or your business is interested in signing up for the HTU course you can contact The Sheffield College on 0114 260 2600 or go to www.traffickinguncovered.com.

If you have any information on human trafficking or any crime, please contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or through our secure online form.

ENDS

For more information please contact Crimestoppers Media Officer Kieran Theivam on 0208 835 3727 or email kieran.theivam@crimestoppers-uk.org.

Notes to editors: Crimestoppers
•    Crimestoppers will receive a payment for every online training course user licence sold through all business development/sales channels where the Crimestoppers logo and name is included.  Funds will go towards the charity’s objective of fighting crime and helping keep communities safe across the UK.
•    Crimestoppers is an independent charity which helps the police to solve crimes, making communities safer. It does this by operating the 24/7 telephone number 0800 555 111 which people can ring to pass on information about crimes anonymously. They can also use our ‘giving information’ form via our website www.crimestoppers-uk.org which is also accessible via internet-enabled mobile phones
•    Around 22 people are arrested and charged every day as a result of information given to Crimestoppers.   
•    Since Crimestoppers began in 1988, it has received over a million actionable calls, resulting in over 113,000 arrests and charges. Over £122 million worth of goods has been recovered and over £223 million worth of drugs has been seized.   
•    In 2005, Crimestoppers launched the UK’s Most Wanted on its website which allows the public to view images of criminals and pass on vital information about their whereabouts. It has been highly successful with over 1,700 arrests to date.
•    Crimestoppers UK was founded by Lord Ashcroft, KCMG, Chairman of Trustees, who in 1988 launched Crimestoppers in the Metropolitan Police area. Crimestoppers’ ‘call to action’ is built on a three-way partnership between the business community, the police and the media.

Notes to editors: Human Trafficking Uncovered
•    Nick Kinsella founded and led the UK Human Trafficking Centre from 2006 to 2010 when it was based in Sheffield, and is currently on the board of the United Nations Global Trust Fund for Victims of Human Trafficking. He has also been involved in international prevention campaigns and training, and helped to bring the UK's first ever successful conviction on human trafficking at Sheffield Crown Court in 2005.
•    The Sheffield College's virtual campus, the Online College, is led by a multi-award winning team with almost two decades of experience of delivering learning and training into people's homes, communities and workplaces locally, nationally and internationally.
•    The European Union Directive 2011/36/EU on Preventing and Combating Human Trafficking in Human Beings and Protecting Its Victims, comes into force in April 2013. The directive states that officials likely to come into contact with victims or potential victims of trafficking in human beings should be adequately trained to identify and deal with such victims.

The online course announcement also comes ahead of Anti-Slavery Day, which raises awareness about the dangers of modern day slavery including human trafficking and exploitation, and the European Union Anti-Trafficking Day, both of which take place on Thursday, October 18th 2012. Anti-Slavery Day falls on October 18th every year to acknowledge that men, women and children continue to be victims of modern day slavery, a largely hidden and brutal crime, and encourages people to be proactive in the fight against it.