What we have done
Following the public commitment made by the Council, to achieve the standards laid out within the Co-operative party Charter against Modern Slavery, a significant amount of work has been delivered. This has included specialist training for procurement officers and the production of guidance for commissioners and contract managers.
The Council has updated its whistleblowing policy to ensure explicit reference to modern slavery. It has also updated its Invitation to Tender documentation in respect of requirements under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and its Safeguarding Policy, that all suppliers and their staff delivering a contract must adhere to. It sets out that they must have an up-to-date Modern Slavery Transparency Statement (where required by law) and that these statements are registered at https://TISCreport.org.
To improve awareness and strengthen its ability to identify and respond to cases of modern slavery, the Council has maintained its commitment to having officers from across council directorates who have received specialist training to become single points of contact for modern slavery. This increased expertise has resulted in improved working practices and co-ordination between the Council, the Police, South Yorkshire Modern Slavery Partnership, and the wider partnership. It is planned that additional officers are to be trained during 2024 as part of a wider Modern Slavery training programme.
A modern slavery awareness raising seminar was delivered to Elected Members of the Council. The was jointly delivered by Council officers, South Yorkshire Police and the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA).
As part of Safeguarding Awareness Week, bespoke modern slavery training was delivered to members of the Care Sector by Council officers and the GLAA. This training focused on the rising number of reported labour exploitation within that sector.
Officers have continued to develop links with local and regional partners to ensure that intelligence and information is received in the right way and appropriately acted upon, either through responsive or proactive operational activity.
Training and awareness raising material has been made available, with posters displayed around Council premises, an e-learning module available to all staff and specialist training for relevant front-line officers.
A Modern Slavery Steering Group has been established within the Council, its purpose to oversee the Councils response to modern slavery and human trafficking and comply with the legislative requirements of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. An Action Plan has been produced to provide a clear structure for work to be carried out and this to record and monitor progress.
Modern Slavery continued to be a key priority for the SRP throughout 2023/24 and the Councils work, along with its partners towards eradicating it is reported to and monitored by the Safer Rotherham Partnership.
The Council worked with South Yorkshire Police on the development of intelligence and information in respect of modern slavery and the production of a detailed intelligence document that is used to advise both the SRP and the Modern Slavery Steering Group and inform and drive both Council and partner activity.