Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure all trafficked, separated and unaccompanied children have an independent guardian to help them access their rights.

Independent Child Trafficking Advocates (ICTAs) are an independent source of advice for trafficked children and somebody who can speak up on their behalf.
We have successfully rolled out ICTAs to one third of all local authorities in England and Wales, in line with the commitment we made in July last year. Where the service is available, all children that are potential victims of trafficking are eligible for support.

The Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act led by Frank Field, Baroness Butler-Sloss and Maria Miller has recently considered Section 48 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which makes provisions for ICTAs. The Review’s interim reports can be found

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/independent-review-of-the-modern-slavery-act#interim-reports

The Government is currently carefully considering the recommendations for ICTAs, and we remain committed to rolling ICTAs out nationally

Unaccompanied children are looked after by the relevant local authority and are entitled to the same services as any other looked after child. Under these arrangements, unaccompanied children will have a professional social worker and an independent reviewing officer to oversee their care arrangements. All unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in England are referred to the Refugee Council’s Children’s Panel and they are also entitled to legal assistance in pursuing their asylum claim. The Government believes that these arrangements ensure unaccompanied children are provided with the independent support and advice that they need.