Research Report 120: Assessment of Independent Child Trafficking Guardians

Section 48 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 introduced the role of Independent Child Trafficking Advocates (ICTAs) to provide an independent source of advice and advocacy for trafficked children. Following the Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, ICTAs were renamed Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) in July 2019.

Following interim findings from the evaluation of the ICTG service in July 2018, the Government announced a revision of the ICTG model. As part of the revised model, provision of the Service underwent a change of structure to reflect the differing needs of children who have existing support networks in the UK compared with children who do not. Children without a figure of parental responsibility for them in the UK continue to receive one-to-one support from ICTG Direct Workers, while the ICTG Regional Practice Co-ordinators’ (RPCs’) role was introduced to focus on children who do have a figure of parental responsibility. The role of the RPCs is to encourage multi-agency support for children who have been identified as trafficked or potentially trafficked, by advocating for the child and ensuring that their ‘best interests’ are being considered in the decisions made by public authorities.

The Home Office and Ipsos MORI jointly conducted the assessment of the RPCs’ role. Ipsos MORI was commissioned by the Home Office to conduct a qualitative assessment of the delivery and impact of the RPCs’ role. Its aim is:

• to gain an in-depth understanding of how the RPCs’ role has been working since its first introduction in October 2018; and
• the perceived impacts on both the professionals within relevant sectors and the children they support.