Strategic brief: Countering Polarising Narratives

We are looking for an agency or individual to help us to develop our campaigning strategy and create a plan for a public-facing campaign that presents the realities of life as a survivor of human trafficking and labour exploitation and demonstrates the importance of the systems they access for support and protection.

Increasingly hostile, regressive law and policy are pushing survivors of human trafficking and migration into destitution, and heightening risk of further exploitation.

We see growing confusion among politicians about the differences between trafficking, smuggling, illegal immigration and asylum seeking; less public sympathy; and unfounded claims about trafficked migrants ‘misusing the system’ to prevent their removal from the UK. Instead of viewing human trafficking and exploitation as serious crimes and violations of human rights, survivors have been caught up in politicians’ war against migration.

At the same time, regressive new immigration laws and policies and reforms to modern slavery law and policy are stripping away protection and support. Survivors are being scapegoated, driven underground, left unsupported and vulnerable to further exploitation while most perpetrators of these crimes enjoy impunity. This is compounded by a broader lack of understanding about trafficking and slavery among the wider public.

Hostile narratives that question survivors’ legitimacy actively work for traffickers. Fear of not being believed keeps survivors silent, preventing them from escaping or accessing support and protection, and it emboldens traffickers who use these same narratives to keep survivors in exploitation.

This isn’t accidental; it’s a political tool, one that redirects public anger away from the people causing harm and onto the people trying to survive it.

We want people to question: What if they’re wrong?

We want to create a bold, provocative strategic communications campaign with disciplined, effective messaging that humanises survivors and challenges populist, right-wing narratives without explicitly naming them. The voices and priorities of those with lived experience of migration and exploitation should be at the heart of this work.

The budget for this work is £15,000 and the deadline for applications is 12pm on Monday 28 September.

For more information on how to apply, please find the full brief here.

We are proud to be a member of the Experts by Experience Employment Network, which aims to create a charitable sector that is led by people with lived experience of the asylum and immigration system. As part of this network, we challenge the one-size-fits-all approach in our employment practices, and respect personal circumstances and needs of people with lived experience. Please feel free to use their information and resources which may help in preparing your job application.