“A Pressing Need”: Anti-Slavery Commissioner’s Call to Scale Victim Navigator Programme 

Justice and Care welcomes the publication of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner’s new report, Neglect of the Policing Response to Modern Slavery. Contributed to by more than 100 individuals, including System Leaders, Senior Police Leads, and Frontline Officers, the report offers one of the clearest pictures to date of why modern slavery remains so difficult to prosecute – and how targeted victim support can change that. 

Despite strong legislation, modern slavery remains one of the hardest crimes to prosecute. Conviction rates are low, with many cases collapsing due to the complexity of investigations and the understandable fear and trauma survivors face. The report is frank: “There is a pressing need for funding to embed victim navigators across the UK.”

A frontline partnership that works 

One of the key solutions recommended is a national rollout of our Victim Navigator programme – a call that has been echoed by the Home Affairs Select Committee, the House of Lords Modern Slavery Act Committee, and the National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead on Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime. 

The programme places our independent specialists inside police forces to support survivors from the moment they are identified, through the criminal justice process and beyond. Navigators help victims access vital services, build trust, and ensure they remain engaged in investigations and prosecutions. Without a Navigator, 44% of survivors choose to engage with police investigations, but this jumps up to more than 90% with a Navigator. 

Victim engagement is “essential for intelligence gathering and securing prosecutions in court. The Justice & Care Victim Navigator programme provide that essential resource to ensuring continued support to victims, achieving improved engagement. The programme should be rolled out across the country.” (IASC report 2025) 

While our Navigators are embedded in police teams, Justice and Care remains an independent charity – able to advocate for survivors while supporting officers in delivering justice. Our shared goal is simple: to secure convictions, disrupt trafficking networks, and help survivors rebuild their lives. 

Why a national rollout is needed 

The Anti-Slavery Commissioner’s report points to under-resourcing, limited specialist training, and fragmented victim support as key barriers to achieving better outcomes. These challenges are well-known to those working on the frontline – including many dedicated officers navigating increasing complexity with limited capacity. 

Since the launch of the Victim Navigator programme in the UK, we have supported over 700 survivors, directly contributed to 70 convictions, and provided expert advice to more than 860 police investigations. We have also trained nearly 11,000 frontline professionals and helped survivors access housing, healthcare, legal support, and compensation. 

To see this support in action, read the story of a trafficking survivor supported by our Victim Navigator programme, whose bravery in court helped secure the conviction of a former UN judge here.

It’s time to scale what works 

The Victim Navigator programme shows what’s possible when trauma-informed support, strategic police partnership, and survivor-led approaches come together. The model is working, but it is currently underfunded and available in just five regions. 

We are ready to expand. Every survivor deserves this level of support. Every force should have access to the tools that improve investigations and deliver justice.  We join the growing cross-sector consensus in calling for the national rollout of the Victim Navigator programme to protect victims, pursue traffickers, and transform the UK’s response to modern slavery.