Understanding Modern Slavery in the UK Social Care Sector

Categories: slavery
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About Course

This free interactive online course has been created to help the non-regulated Adult Social Care (ASC) workforce understand the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and how it applies within the UK care sector. While most modern slavery training focuses on spotting victims, this course is different. It is designed for carers themselves, to help you recognise, prevent and respond to exploitation in your own work.

 

Through real-life and scenario-based case studies, overview of relevant laws and interactive learning, you will gain a clear understanding of your rights, the responsibilities of employers and commissioners and what “decent work” should look like under UK law. Each module builds your confidence to identify coercive practices, document abuse safely and use your voice to demand fair treatment.

 

This course equips you not only with knowledge of Modern Slavery Act 2015 but also with the tools of empowerment, so you can protect yourself and others in a sector where long hours, isolation and underpayment are too often normalised.

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What Will You Learn?

  • Understand the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and how it applies to the care sector.
  • Identify the key indicators of modern slavery in care, including overwork, coercion, unpaid hours and tied visa.
  • Distinguish between poor working conditions and unfree labour using legal and ethical frameworks.
  • Learn about your employment rights under UK labour law, including pay, rest and contract requirements.
  • Recognise how local authority commissioning, agency models and family arrangements can unintentionally create or perpetuate exploitation.
  • Understand the new sector-specific definition of modern slavery in care developed by Social Care Research Ltd (introduced in Module 5).
  • Learn strategies for collective action and advocacy through Module 9: 809,000 Voices – From Isolation to Influence.
  • Gain practical tools for protecting your own wellbeing, documenting violations and reporting concerns safely.

Course Content

Why This Course is a Must for You
In this section, you will get familiar with how the course works. To move forward, you must complete a simple task. If you find that the next topic is locked, just click on NOTES, write a short reflection or comment, and the next section will automatically unlock. Remember to click on "Mark as Complete" to open the next section.

  • Purpose of the course
  • Social care sector stakeholder modern slavery statements
  • The Safeguarding Gap
  • True or False
  • Why empowerment matters
  • Five Decades of Evidence on Exploitation
  • Global ambition: UN Sustainable Development Goal 8.7
  • Why prevention matters more than ever
  • Why Social Care Research Ltd developed this course
  • Disclaimer
  • Reflective Exercise
  • Modern Slavery: Myths that keep it hidden
  • Spotting modern slavery in your own life
  • Quiz – Not All Problems Are Slavery — Can You Tell Which Is Which?
  • Not All Problems Are Slavery — Can You Tell Which Is Which?

Module 1: Context and Background

Module 2: Introduction to Modern Slavery

Module 3: Your Legal Rights as a Care Worker in the UK

Module 4: The Hidden Cost of Caring – Health Issues Every Carer Should Know

Module 5: Commissioned to Fail – How Local Authority Models Fuel Exploitation

Module 6: Profiting from Care – How Agencies Exploit Their Workforce

Module 7: Behind Closed Doors – When Families Turn Carers into Servants

Module 8: Modern Traffickers – Trafficking Through ‘Safe’ Routes

Module 9: 809,000 Voices: From Isolation to Influence

Module 10: Test
No course would be complete without a test and this module is designed to do just that. Here, you will be challenged to demonstrate your understanding of the material through a combination of knowledge checks, scenario analyses and reflective exercises. The aim is not only to assess what you have learned but to ensure you can apply these insights in real world care settings, protecting yourself and others from exploitation and unsafe working conditions.

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