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Research and training There are still a number of gaps in child trafficking data, notably the NRM statistics failing to include the ethnic background of referrals, despite persistent calls to do so (for recent example, see BASNET report 8). This lack of information is undermining any chance of a culturally competent approach to tailoring responses to children. Although there is an increasing amount of research being conducted within the field of modern slavery and child exploitation, there is currently a lack of longitudinal studies being conducted due to the cost and logistical challenges of such projects. Collaboration is key for a project to attempt to measure generational change, yet knowledge can easily become siloed. There were also calls for developing a contextual safeguarding framework in modern slavery, exploring how such mechanisms could be incorporated across different sites across the UK. It is important to note that monitoring and evaluation are intrinsic to good practice. Academics and researchers play a key role here, as they are perfectly positioned to conduct external evaluations. It is crucial that an evaluative framework is embedded into the models from the beginning, so academics can capture and analyse the full data available. Recently, the University of Bedfordshire and charity ECPAT UK have been announced as research partners, supported through the Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre. Studies should centre the voices of children to determine how they experience the service, which requires the valuing of qualitative data within this research. If these findings are shared widely, at practitioner conferences and through accessible reports, then feedback can be implemented back into practice to improve organisational responses to exploitation. Furthermore, training plays a crucial role in ensuring best practice is shared across the field but more research is required to explore whether or not training has an impact on professional behaviour. For children’s social workers, modern slavery and child trafficking is not a core module, therefore it is important to 31
