Blog: Q&A with lived experience consultant about UK’s services for young adult survivors of modern slavery

Hope for Justice commissioned Fatmata Sesay as an independent consultant with lived experience of modern slavery to assist with the writing and research for our new report, ‘Avoiding the cliff edge: working with young survivors of modern slavery as they turn 18’. Fatmata provided a review of the systems and services which young people must navigate.  

In this blog, Fatmata shares her expertise and draws on her own experiences of the support system and services available to young survivors of modern slavery in the UK as they turn 18. She discusses the existing challenges faced by young people and raises possible solutions. Fatmata praises the Independent Modern Slavery Advocate® (IMSA®) model, which aims to provide every survivor of modern slavery in the UK with access to an accredited independent advocate. Hope for Justice, the British Red Cross and the Snowdrop Project are currently piloting the model across the UK. 

A: There is an assumption that because you are now 18, you should know better. Coming from a different country to the UK, you are practically in a whirlwind of emotions. There are so many hurdles that people do not talk about. We do not even think about the cultural barriers; it takes so much adjusting, even looking people in the eyes, or speaking to the authorities. 

In my situation, for instance, I had been granted my status, however once you get your status, you get a matter of days to leave accommodation. I was in Sheffield trying to find myself a place to live. The local authority had their processes and I could not be given temporary accommodation. My only option was to be in a home for domestic violence victims, but I did not feel safe where they placed me. 

I remember speaking to a member of staff at the local authority because I was thinking of applying to university, and they just said casually, ‘You can figure it out’. At that point, I was almost suicidal, I was thinking ‘what is the point of me living when no one cares’. 

On another occasion, my local authority refused to give me access over the phone to my support worker, the sole individual that I found comfort in, and I could not even ask questions. Instead, I was put on the phone to someone I did not know. The complexity and emotional trauma around this is huge – it requires a lot of mental capacity. 

So, any young person left in that situation might end up being in a position where their fears are tremendous. We have seen situations where people are self-harming. Other people do not find reason to live. This is something local authorities are not taking into account. They are looking at their own systems and procedures and leaving young people out in the wild and the cold. They need to put themselves in the shoes of the young person so that they have a better understanding of what they are going through. 

A: I can see the pain from the organisations and their staff because they wish they could do more but there is such a tight budget in place that there is only so much they can do. If organisations are constrained by budget, then their help is going to be limited. This is the case for some, though not all. You meet some who genuinely enjoy their work but others who make you question whether they just work for the pay, or if they have done it for so many years, or if they have come across people who are difficult. Some almost have emotional disconnection. 

In a previous role, I attended a seminar organised by a highly reputable organisation in the charity sector, where a Home Office representative stated that “people are taking advantage of the system” in reference to us – refugees, modern slavery survivors, asylum seekers and migrants. That felt like a personal attack. I never intended to leave my home country – I had hopes and dreams there. But if the UK offered hope and safety, why wouldn’t I take that chance? Being told I was abusing the system was deeply offensive, especially considering how broken the system actually is. 

A: It took me years to come forward. You are always terrified of facing local authorities because of your exploitation, so having openness and inclusivity makes more young people be in a position where we are willing and able to be vulnerable, where we come forward and seek the help we need – rather than scenarios where we may be re-trafficked. In the UK, it is depressing to see how many young people are being groomed, be that online or through ‘county lines’. Perpetrators give a small amount of attention to their victim, and they think this person cares about them. It shows that if local authorities talked about their services in a way that is open and welcoming, young people would go to them for help instead of going to the wrong places. If we took the time to care and listen, it would help a survivor feel comfortable, able to speak up, and able to seek help. 

A: I would love to create a directory of all the services available so young people know where or how to get the resources to contact the right organisations. Even with this, there would be language barriers to consider. 

The digital space and technology can be a barrier. It took me eight years to update my LinkedIn profile; having to sort the wording around whether I am an asylum seeker or a refugee. You are perceived in a different light altogether and that is one thing I have personally not been able to understand. Why is it that there are so many people who are obviously asylum seekers, refugees, migrants, but we are ashamed to own that as part of our existence? It took me years to say I am an asylum seeker/migrant/refugee. It is another layer to have to go through. 

I remember I was waiting on my immigration, and my sister had passed away. I wanted to drop everything and go back home to my family, but I did not know that if I went, I would be arrested if I came back to the UK.

The Home Office often withholds vital information from people like us. Even basic details – like which countries we can travel to with specific documents, or the different types of travel documents – are hard to access. When you call, you’re met with vague responses or excuses, and the website offers little clarity. This lack of transparency leaves us feeling excluded and limits our ability to integrate and make informed decisions about our lives. 

A: There are so many people whose needs are left unmet. When I was living in Sheffield, the whole city had only one place offering counselling and the waiting list was years to see a therapist. I had friends on anti-depressants because they had to self-medicate. The system does not take into account that the timeline is so long, and it is so difficult to live in and deal with uncertainty. There is constant worry about status. So there needs to be a clear outline of what people can access and knowing where they can get access so they can make the right choices. 

A: The only thing we mostly neglect is inclusion; we need young people and survivors of modern slavery to have a say. What you might assume to be someone’s ‘need’ is not what they want at a specific time. At different stages of life, there are different tiers of needs. At a specific time, someone with poor mental health may need support to understand the legal aspect of their needs or support with having a safe haven (as housing issues can also take a toll on mental health), so we need to start from their own perspective. 

If we want to see a world that is an all-round good place for us to live in, we need to see young people as a tangible force to be reckoned with. In every aspect of life, when you look at a young person being the change maker of tomorrow, we need to give them a life that is worth living and for them to know life is a safe place for them. 

For survivors of modern slavery, there was a point in our lives when things did not go as we hoped. It is unfair for someone who has been through so many difficult situations to be expected to come forward in life a better person when that is not what they have been raised to know or be like. That should be a number one reason to help the younger generation. We want healed, whole, better people in a better space to give back. 

A: Having that one-to-one connection with someone, and opportunity to seek the service you want when you want it, is a massive help for anyone in that position. An IMSA will have an understanding of that individual’s needs and be able to communicate on their behalf in a more holistic way where their needs will be met. 

One thing that concerns me is that, in the UK, there is a culture of saying ‘once you’re 18, you are more or less independent’, whereas in the country where I came from, you are probably at home with your family until you are in your late 20s. You can imagine how that might leave a young person feeling, with a big fear factor. So I’m so hopeful and positive that having an IMSA will help people build connection where they are able to be vulnerable with someone. It helps you a lot because you do not have to worry about talking to lots of different people at different times. You don’t have to repeat yourself and relive your story constantly. 

I remember there was a time I had given my statement, and they said they had lost it, and they asked me to say it all again, and my support worker wanted me to show a level of rage, which is very unlike me, but I could not help it and my outburst was a display of my wanting to be free. 

So, I am so excited that at last, through the IMSA model, we have one person who survivors can go through their journey with, who is almost going to be like their ally, helping them to navigate through the system. 

Fatmata Sesay is a mother and is the founder of Tamereneh, a nonprofit that supports survivors of modern slavery, refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. 

As someone who has navigated the complexities of being a refugee and asylum seeker, Fatmata has used her lived experience to empower other disadvantaged groups, helping others to rebuild their lives. 

Fatmata is currently in the process of setting up a nonprofit to help asylum seekers, refugees and migrants. Her passion lies in transforming systems through human-centred design and collective action. She is also passionate about diplomacy, advocacy and being a voice for others. 

Fatmata first started working with Hope for Justice in 2022 as a survivor consultant, providing social and legal support, offering lived experience, expertise and academic policy insight.

She successfully applied to be a lived experience consultant for Stage 1 of the IMSA Model Development project and worked closely with the IMSA Model project board.