Overseas students have vanished from courses and then been found working in exploitative conditions
Photograph: Lasse Kristensen/AlamyPhotograph: Lasse Kristensen/AlamyUniversities have been urged to be on high alert for human trafficking after suspected victims brought to Britain on student visas vanished from their courses and were found working in exploitative conditions hundreds of miles away.
In those cases, many of the suspected victims had come to Britain on legitimate skilled worker visas brought in by the Home Office to The students, who also came from India and reportedly spoke little English, were allegedly forced to work 24-hour shifts without breaks and paid so little that they could not afford to eat, according to the charity. The case was referred to police.
The University of Nottingham Rights Lab, the world’s largest group of modern slavery researchers, has also described international student recruitment as an area of high risk at British universities. and warned in a recent report on campuses that student visas could be used to facilitate human trafficking.
Universities UK, which represents 140 universities, said there were very low levels of abuse in the student system and that many of its members “go beyond what is formally required by the Home Office” to prevent students being exploited. Extra steps it recommends universities take to prevent abuses include introducing pre-application screening calls to ensure the credibility of applicants and increased deposit requirements.