Child trafficking statistics

Global trafficking statistics

20.9 million men, women and children are trapped in some form of forced labour or human trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation.

International Labour Organisation, ILO Global Estimate of Forced Labour: Results and methodology, 2012

1.2 million children are trafficked every year.

International Labour Organisation, Every Child Counts: New Global Estimates on Child Labour, 2012

Between 2010 and 2012, victims holding citizenship from 152 different countries were found in 124 countries.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, 2014

UK trafficking statistics

3,805 potential victims of human trafficking were identified in 2016.

National Crime Agency, National Referral Mechanism Statistics: End of Year Summary, 2016

More than a third of all potential victims of trafficking (1,278) were children aged 18 and under.

National Crime Agency, National Referral Mechanism Statistics: End of Year Summary, 2016

The United Kingdom is the most prominent country of origin for trafficked children – a total of 255 reported cases – followed by Albania (227), Vietnam (227), Afghanistan (74), Eritrea (48), Nigeria (43) and Iran (42).

National Crime Agency, National Referral Mechanism Statistics: End of Year Summary, 2016

More than a quarter of all trafficked children go missing from local authority care.

ECPAT UK and Missing People, Heading Back to Harm: A study on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK, 2016

Latest

ECPAT UK’s short film on child trafficking wins gold medal at New York Festival

ECPAT UK (Every Child Protected Against Trafficking) is thrilled that its animated short film about child trafficking in cannabis cultivation – The Secret Gardeners, has won the gold medal in the Human Concerns category at the New York Festivals World’s Best TV and Films awards.
London Superhero Run

Be a superhero for child victims of trafficking! Sign up for the London Superhero 5k or 10k run on Sunday, 13th May - your chance to become a real-life superhero as you pull on your cape and join thousands of fellow runners descending on Regent’s Park, London.
The Color Run

Take part in the Color Run in London - one of the largest and most unique 5k colour fun runs in the world. In this family-friendly event at Wembley Park, London, you'll join thousands of other runners donning a special white t-shirt. During the the fun run, you'll get covered from head to toe in a rainbow of colours!
Films for practitioners

Watch ECPAT UK's short films designed to raise awareness among professional about the issues facing child victims of trafficking and unaccompanied children seeking asylum.

The Secret Gardeners: New film on child trafficking from Vietnam

The Secret Gardeners aims to inform professionals about the plight of children who are forced by organised crime gangs to grow drugs in houses across the UK but who often face criminalisation and prison.
The National Referral Mechanism

The National Referral Mechanism is a process set up by the Government to identify and support victims of trafficking in the UK. It was born out of the Government's obligation to identify victims under the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Human Trafficking, which came into force on 1 February 2008.
Current campaign: Demand specialist support for trafficked children

We are working with Care2 to call on the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd MP, to overhaul the current system of identification/support for victims of trafficking – the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
Heading back to harm: A study on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK

Trafficked and unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are going missing from UK care at an “alarmingly high” rate, according to a new study by leading charities ECPAT UK and Missing People.
Child trafficking statistics
Volunteer

ECPAT UK relies on committed volunteers to support the work that we do. Without their help, we would not be able to campaign as effectively against child exploitation.
Stephen's case exposes failings in child trafficking support

‘Stephen’ was identified as a former child victim of trafficking but now faces the threat of removal to Vietnam. His case has rightly received significant public attention, highlighting the urgent need to reform the support system (the National Referral Mechanism) for other children who have been victims of modern slavery in the UK.
Our team

ECPAT UK's team has more than 30 years' experience working on issues of child trafficking, child protection, child sexual exploitation, unaccompanied children, modern slavery and more.
Contact us

If you have an immediate concern about a child's welfare, please contact your local council's social care department, who are available 24 hours a day. For all other enquiries related to our work, contact [email protected] or call 020 7607 2136.
About us

ECPAT UK is a leading children's rights organisation working to protect children from child trafficking and transnational child exploitation. We support children everywhere to uphold their rights and to live a life free from abuse and exploitation.