PEOPLE from all backgrounds can be victims of modern slavery – Council bosses have been told.

And one police officer working to help vulnerable children and adults in Bradford urged people to contact police if they came across anyone who they felt might be being exploited by unscrupulous “employers.”

Superintendent Richard Padwell was speaking at a meeting of Bradford Council’s Executive on Tuesday when he was asked about the issue of modern-day slavery.

Members were being given an update on the work being done in the district to protect vulnerable children and adults.

One issue discussed was modern slavery. Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe said: “I’m not sure what people would know what modern slavery looks like. How do they spot the signs that someone is being exploited this way? What does that look like?

Supt Padwell replied: “There are instances where people are moved to work in cannabis farms, often from other countries.

“Issues like this have been in the news recently.

“Modern slavery could be anything from a family having someone within that family trafficked to work in domestic servitude, people forced to work for low wages – there have even been cases in other parts of the country of people being harvested for their organs.

Modern slavery criminals in West Yorkshire rarely punished

“There are a lot of different aspects to modern day slavery – it is not restricted to one age demographic, one nationality, one gender, people from all backgrounds can be victims.

“If you have a concern, then share it. Do you have suspicions an individual is being treated badly? It can be an issue with a number of different types of business. There are lots of businesses where individuals working there might have been trafficked to be exploited by an employer.

“Do these individuals have employment rights? Are they being paid in an appropriate way or is it cash in hand?

“Are they being provided with the opportunity to speak to customers or other people in the business, or are they being hidden in plain sight? Am I allowed to speak to this person privately or am I being prevented from doing so?”

He said in the vast majority of situations people are not being exploited by their “bosses” but urged people to remain vigilant.

He said information received by police would be assessed, adding: “If you’re not sure it feels right, report it.”

Cllr Hinchliffe said: “There are a lot of pressures on public services, but we would still prefer people to report concerns because it will stop crime being committed.”