This week during Prime Minister’s Questions Heidi Allen MP urged the Prime Minister to help victims of trafficking get access to benefits and assistance once they leave the 45 day reflection and recovery period.

Ms Allen’s question was prompted by her position on the Work and Pensions Select Committee which is currently conducting an inquiry into the role the benefits system has in helping victims of human trafficking once they leave the initial help provided under the reflection and recovery period.

Victims of trafficking are extremely vulnerable when the reflection and recovery period comes to an end, but research has highlighted that the system does not provide adequate support to help them move to the next stage of their rehabilitation.

Many victims of trafficking who are eligible to receive welfare benefits find it extremely difficult to prove that they are entitled to this help. Not only are they suffering from trauma and possibly from health problems, many have no official documents, they may have difficulties with English and certainly are unlikely to understand the complex system of how they may be able to access assistance.

Sadly the welfare system has made little allowance for the special situation and needs of trafficking victims, and JobCentre Plus staff lack adequate training and guidance to help them respond appropriately. The Work and Pensions Committee has set itself the task of finding out exactly what role the welfare system has to play, where it needs to do better, and what improvements can be made.

CARE has for a long time called on the Government to increase the reflection and recovery period to give victims 90 days of guaranteed support, we also believe that it is vital that the Government takes responsibility for what happens to victims at the end of that period when they are still so very vulnerable.

We welcome the statement by the Prime Minister in response to Ms Allen’s question that she “we will work with the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) in looking at the support that is given” to victims and we look forward with interest to further developments in the Work and Pensions Committee Inquiry.

You can watch the exchange here on Huffington Post