Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help women who have experienced adult sexual exploitation.

The Government is fully committed to protecting victims from, and tackling, the devastating harm associated with adult sexual exploitation.

Adult sexual exploitation can occur across a spectrum of offending, from intimate partner violence, including domestic abuse and rape and sexual violence to serious and organised crime, including human trafficking. These offences are covered under a range of legislation.

Due to the complex nature of adult sexual exploitation, victims can access tailored support across different services depending on the harm they have experienced.

The Home Office is providing £1.36 million over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, providing early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial online exploitation and the risk on online sexual harm. We are also providing over £180,000 in 2023/24 to Trevi Women to provide support to women with complex and multiple needs, including women seeking to exit on-street prostitution in Plymouth.

The Government funded Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract also provides victims of modern slavery access to safehouse accommodation and a dedicated support worker who provides information on their rights and facilitates access to wider statutory support services, specifically related to the victim’s experience – this can be gender specific, such as assistance with accessing sexual health services as a result of sexual exploitation.