A charity has warned that human traffickers are purposefully targeting homeless people for modern slavery.
Gangs have even attempted to infiltrate homeless charities by attempting to register as volunteers, one charity leader said.
Unseen, the charity behind the Modern Slavery Helpline, says homeless people have become a target for traffickers, with 48 potential victims reported to have experienced homelessness before exploitation.
More than 350 potential victims of exploitation flagged to the helpline since it launched in October 2016 were homeless either before, during or after they escaped.
These individuals were involved in 276 cases of modern slavery (some cases involve more than one victim), comprising 7% of all modern slavery cases reported.
Andrew Smith, chief executive of Hull Homeless and chair of Humber Modern Slavery Partnership, said: “Traffickers often gain people’s trust at soup kitchens and drop ins and trick them into slavery through false stories of success and money.
“We know from working with partners around the UK that exploiters and criminal gangs have tried to register as volunteers with homeless charities, using a position of trust to coerce service users into forced labour.”
He added frontline homeless services needed help to better understand the signs, risk factors and potential harm of modern slavery to homeless people.
Most of the victims who were homeless prior to exploitation were from the UK rather than trafficked from abroad, the charity found.
Most were forced into slave labour or were forced to commit crimes for their exploiters, most commonly forced begging. They were commonly recruited from homeless shelters and public spaces such as parks.
The report found 86 people were homeless during their exploitation and were mostly in either forced criminality or forced labour.
The report has also highlighted the high number of people who escaped from modern slavery only to find themselves homeless, with 234 people indicated to be homeless after exploitation.
However, unlike those who were homeless before or during exploitation, those who were homeless after included significant numbers escaping sexual exploitation and domestic servitude.
Rachel Harper, manager of the helpline, said it receives calls about individuals who have escaped situations of exploitation but are still in need – without a home and vulnerable to re-exploitation.
She said: “We know that recruitment tactics include targeting varied vulnerabilities such as poverty, substance dependencies and language barriers. The helpline’s data on reported cases of modern slavery and homelessness can be used to better inform prevention efforts and responses to exploitation.”
She added that awareness and collaboration with homeless charities, members of the public and housing agencies is crucial in tackling it.