Sabrina Hewitt is a London-based entrepreneur and mum-of-three. She is also a survivor of modern slavery. As a child, Sabrina was exploited by a family member. As she moved into her teens, she was then groomed by a boyfriend and forced into county lines. Sabrina has now produced a film with the charity Causeway, to share her story and shine a spotlight on modern slavery and criminal exploitation.
It is estimated that over 50 million people around the world are currently trapped in modern slavery, with more than 100,000 of those in the UK. Projections put modern slavery at costing the UK £33 billion per year.
When London-based Sabrina Hewitt, 43, looks back at her childhood, she recalls an upbringing filled with violence and fear. From a young age, she was scared of lots of the adults around her.
“My home life wasn’t good at all. There was a lot of domestic violence. We weren’t cared for or looked after in the way you expect children to be. I remember once waking up to armed police, it was one of the scariest things I’ve ever experienced. From a really young age I’d be running away from home. I just wanted to be out of that environment.”, Sabrina said.
As the eldest sibling, Sabrina often found herself particularly exposed to the trauma and abuse that was happening. Before she’d even turned ten, one of Sabrina’s family member began using her to carry drugs.
“A close family member of mine was a prolific drug dealer in the area. From about eight, they’d take me out and make me hold drugs for them. I didn’t even know I had drugs on me most of the time.”
Sabrina was later taken into care, and when she was 16-years-old she was then moved into an adult hostel. It was here that Sabrina was exposed to another situation of exploitation. This time, by a new boyfriend she met living there.
“I hadn’t even turned 17 when I was moved to live in a hostel with all these adults. Looking back now, I was still just a child. I met a man who was living in the hostel, and we began a relationship. It was textbook grooming. He played the boyfriend role very well, but it’s only when I look back that I see he was manipulating and grooming me.”
Sabrina’s relationship became abusive, however by this point she felt both scared of her boyfriend, and isolated with no support network and nowhere else to go. He began criminally exploiting her. Sabrina was forced to help her boyfriend and his gang with their drug deals, and she began being groomed into county lines.
“That relationship became violent. My boyfriend would be really aggressive and threatening. He had weapons. I was first made to hide and carry drugs for them. I was then sent around the country doing drug runs across the drug supply network.”
Criminal exploitation refers to a person being forced to take part in criminal activity against their will or through coercion. The majority of UK victims are British nationals, often teenagers and vulnerable adults. Whilst higher numbers of those identified as criminal exploitation victims are male, modern slavery charity Causeway are keen to emphasise that it can also affect females, as Sabrina’s story demonstrates.
Sabrina’s exploitation continued for a number of years. She was then arrested herself and sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison. At this point, Sabrina hadn’t even acknowledged or come to terms with the exploitation and grooming which she’d experienced. This didn’t happen until she was in prison.
“When I went to jail, I was separated from my children. Not being able to be with them is the worst thing I’ve been through. It made me determined to turn my life around for when I got out. I worked on educating myself about everything that had happened. This is when I realised I’d been exploited, and began to understand what modern slavery and criminal exploitation is.”
When Sabrina was released from prison, she started volunteering with young people at risk of criminal exploitation and county lines. This led to a paid role, and soon Sabrina began to build a career as a caseworker, focusing on at-risk young people and victims of exploitation.
Sabrina has now joined forces with the charity Causeway. She is sharing her story as part of their Survivors: Life Beyond Exploitation campaign, to bring greater awareness to modern slavery and criminal exploitation, and drive support for the survivors which the charity are currently working with.
Causeway are one of the largest providers of modern slavery support in the UK. As part of their latest campaign, they are appealing for individuals and organisations to donate gift cards, unused toiletries and new clothes. These will be distributed to the survivors they support, and who are early on in their recovery journey.
Sabrina herself is currently studying a postgraduate degree in modern slavery, organised crime and human trafficking. She has also setup her own business called SH Consultancy & Training, where she consults and delivers training on county lines and exploitation to professionals that work with at-risk young people. Sabrina is determined to create the change needed so others don’t go through what she did.
“I don’t want all of my experiences to be in vain. Knowing my story could potentially help save the life of a young person gives me this extra drive to keep doing what I’m doing. Modern slavery and exploitation is hidden in plain sight. It can take many forms, and it’s happening everywhere we go.”, Sabrina said.
Those in a position to donate gift cards, toiletries and clothes to Causeway’s latest modern slavery appeal, can email [email protected] or visit www.wearecauseway.org.uk
