The Hidden Rise of Modern Slavery in Britain

13 May 2026

Paul Francis

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A Problem That Never Really Went Away

There is a tendency to think of slavery as something distant, something rooted firmly in the past or confined to parts of the world far removed from everyday British life. It sits in history books, in documentaries, in the language of abolition and progress. It is not something most people associate with modern Britain, or with the streets, workplaces and systems that shape daily life.

Silhouette of a person sitting on the floor in a dim hallway, head in hands, creating a somber mood. Light filters from a door in the background.

And yet, the latest findings from the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner suggest something far more uncomfortable. Modern slavery is not only present in the UK, it is rising, and doing so at a pace that is becoming harder to ignore. Referrals of suspected victims have reached record levels, with more than 23,000 cases identified in 2025 alone. That figure has nearly doubled in just a few years, and the expectation is that it will continue to grow rather than stabilise.

This is not a sudden emergence. It is a problem that has been building quietly, largely out of sight, but increasingly woven into the fabric of the modern economy.

Not Somewhere Else, But Here

One of the most persistent misconceptions about modern slavery is that it exists elsewhere. That it is something imported, something external, something that happens beyond the borders of everyday British experience. The reality is far closer to home.

Exploitation linked to modern slavery has been identified across a wide range of sectors within the UK, including agriculture, construction, hospitality, car washes and domestic work. It exists in both urban and rural settings, often hidden in plain sight. It does not always announce itself in obvious ways. More often, it sits beneath the surface, embedded within legitimate industries and supply chains.

Perhaps most strikingly, a growing number of victims are British nationals. This is not solely an issue of migration or international trafficking, although those factors remain significant. It is also about vulnerability within the UK itself, about people who fall into situations where exploitation becomes possible.

That shift changes the conversation. It moves the issue from something that feels external to something that is undeniably domestic.

Vulnerability in a Changing Economy

At the centre of the rise is a familiar but deeply troubling pattern. Exploitation thrives where vulnerability exists. The cost of living crisis, rising housing pressures and increasing levels of financial instability have created conditions in which more people are exposed to risk. Debt, insecure employment and lack of stable accommodation can all make individuals more susceptible to coercion, manipulation or false promises of work.

A person wearing a gray knit hat sits against a dark wall, arms crossed over knees, head resting on arms, conveying a somber mood.

Modern slavery does not begin with chains. It often begins with an offer, an opportunity that appears to provide a way out of a difficult situation. That is what makes it so effective. It adapts to circumstances, finding points of weakness and building from there. As economic pressure increases, so too does the pool of people who can be targeted.

The Role of Technology in a New Form of Exploitation

What distinguishes the current moment from previous decades is the role of technology.

The Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner has highlighted how digital platforms, artificial intelligence and new forms of payment are reshaping how exploitation operates. Recruitment can now take place online, through social media or informal job networks that reach large numbers of people quickly. Communication between those orchestrating exploitation and those being exploited can happen remotely, reducing the need for direct physical control.

Financial transactions can be obscured through digital systems, making it harder to trace the flow of money. At the same time, technology allows for greater coordination, enabling exploitation to operate across locations and at a scale that would have been far more difficult in the past.

This is not a return to old forms of slavery. It is something that has evolved alongside the modern world, using its tools and infrastructure to remain hidden.

A System Struggling to Keep Pace

The UK does not lack laws or frameworks designed to address modern slavery. There are systems in place, from identification and referral mechanisms to enforcement and victim support structures. In theory, these provide a comprehensive response. In practice, the situation is more complex.

The Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner has raised concerns that the UK’s response has begun to stagnate. The scale of the problem is increasing, while the systems designed to address it are struggling to keep up. This is not necessarily due to a lack of intent, but to the challenge of responding to an issue that is both evolving and expanding.

Policing, support services and regulatory bodies are all operating within wider pressures. Resources are stretched, priorities are competing, and the nature of modern slavery itself makes it difficult to detect and disrupt.

The result is a gap between what exists on paper and what is experienced in reality.

The Part We Do Not See

Perhaps the most unsettling aspect of modern slavery is how much of it remains unseen.

The figures that are reported represent identified cases, situations where something has been recognised and brought into the system. They do not capture the full extent of the problem. Many victims never come forward. Many situations remain hidden, either through fear, lack of awareness or the subtlety of the conditions involved.

This means that the true scale is likely higher than any official number suggests.

It also means that modern slavery can exist alongside everyday life without being immediately visible. It can sit behind familiar settings, within industries that appear ordinary, sustained by systems that are not designed to expose it easily.

A Question About the Systems Around Us

What makes this issue particularly significant in the current moment is how closely it connects to broader questions about the systems people rely on. The UK has legal frameworks in place. It has institutions designed to protect vulnerable individuals. It has enforcement bodies tasked with identifying and addressing exploitation. None of these has disappeared.

And yet, the number of people being drawn into situations of exploitation is increasing.

This does not point to a single failure. It points to a more complex reality in which systems exist, but are being tested by changing conditions. Economic pressure creates vulnerability. Technology enables new forms of control. Enforcement struggles to keep pace with both.

In that space, exploitation finds room to grow.

A Problem That Demands Attention, Not Distance

It would be easier to treat modern slavery as an issue that exists at the edges, something separate from the everyday concerns of most people. But the evidence suggests that it is more closely connected to the conditions shaping modern Britain than many would expect.

It is tied to how people work, how they live, how they access opportunities and how they are supported when those systems do not function as intended.

That is what makes it difficult to ignore. Not simply the scale of the problem, but the way it reflects deeper pressures within society. Modern slavery has not reappeared. It has adapted.

And as it adapts, it raises a question that is harder to answer than it first appears. If the systems designed to prevent exploitation are in place, why is it still increasing?

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Frankenstein: The Monster Born from Science and Imagination

Paul Francis
Oct 23, 2024
3 min read

Stitched together from different corpses, powered by electricity, and misunderstood by almost everyone—Frankenstein’s creature has been terrifying (and occasionally tugging at our heartstrings) for over 200 years. But how did Mary Shelley dream up this iconic tale of scientific hubris gone wrong? Let’s dig into the origins of Frankenstein and the monster that has haunted us ever since.

Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful - The Creature (From the novel Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Shelley)

Frankenstein on Screen: From Silent Horror to Pop Culture Icon

Frankenstein’s creature has had many faces over the years, but none are more iconic than Boris Karloff’s 1931 portrayal in Universal Pictures’ Frankenstein. With his flat head, bolts in his neck, and lumbering walk, this version of the monster became the standard for all future Frankenstein films. The follow-up, Bride of Frankenstein (1935), brought an even more gothic flair, with Elsa Lanchester’s unforgettable shock-haired bride.

Since then, the monster has appeared in everything from The Monster Squad (1987) to humorous takes like Young Frankenstein (1974), proving that this tragic figure can be both terrifying and oddly lovable. The creature’s mix of innocence and strength makes him a timeless character, and the story’s themes of creation, responsibility, and isolation are just as relevant today as they were when Mary Shelley wrote the novel.

The Birth of a Monster: Mary Shelley and the Making of Frankenstein

In 1816, at the age of just 18, Mary Shelley was staying near Lake Geneva with a group of literary heavyweights, including her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley and Lord Byron. During a rainy summer, they challenged each other to write ghost stories. From that challenge came Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, published in 1818.

But where did the idea for this horrifying yet sympathetic creature come from? One potential source was the scientific discussions happening at the time. Shelley was influenced by the emerging theories of her day, especially the work of galvanism, the idea that electricity could reanimate dead tissue. Scientists like Luigi Galvani and his nephew Giovanni Aldini were experimenting with electrical currents on dead animals—and even human corpses. Mary Shelley likely drew on these scientific advances when imagining Victor Frankenstein’s method for bringing his creation to life.

While Shelley never explicitly stated that galvanism was the sole inspiration for the novel, its themes of reanimation and the dangers of playing God fit perfectly with the public's fascination with these early scientific experiments. Frankenstein’s monster, powered by lightning, became the ultimate cautionary tale about humanity’s desire to control life and death.

"To a new world of gods and monsters!" — Dr. Pretorius (Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Mary Shelley: Life, Love, and Tragedy

Mary Shelley’s life was as dramatic as the stories she wrote. The daughter of philosopher William Godwin and feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft, she grew up surrounded by radical ideas. Her relationship with the poet Percy Shelley was scandalous—they ran away together while he was still married—and her life was marked by both intense love and deep tragedy.

Shelley experienced the loss of several of her children and her husband’s untimely death by drowning, which undoubtedly influenced the themes of loss and isolation found in Frankenstein.

The World That Made Frankenstein

The early 19th century was a time of great change and upheaval. The Industrial Revolution was beginning to reshape society, sparking new inventions, scientific breakthroughs, and fears about the consequences of unchecked progress. Europe was still recovering from the Napoleonic Wars, and questions about the limits of human power were in the air. Frankenstein taps into these anxieties, with its cautionary tale of a scientist who takes his experiments too far, paying the price for meddling with the forces of life and death.

In addition to scientific concerns, the novel explores the dangers of isolation. Both Frankenstein and his creature suffer from loneliness—Victor through his obsessive pursuit of knowledge, and the creature through his rejection by society. This theme of isolation resonated with many readers then and continues to be a powerful aspect of the story today.

A Modern Prometheus

In ancient mythology, Prometheus defied the gods to bring fire to humanity, only to be punished for his transgression. Victor Frankenstein is often compared to Prometheus, as he too defies the natural order by bringing life to the dead. But like Prometheus, Frankenstein suffers for his overreaching ambition, and his creature becomes a symbol of the unintended consequences of scientific progress.

The Lasting Legacy of Frankenstein

More than two centuries after its publication, Frankenstein remains a powerful cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked ambition and the ethical dilemmas of scientific exploration. But beyond that, it’s a deeply human story about loneliness, acceptance, and the consequences of playing God. So, this Halloween, when you see the iconic green-faced monster staggering through your nightmares, remember—he’s not just a creature; he’s a reflection of our own fears about creation, responsibility, and the limits of science.