Last year, Hestia supported nearly 900 adults who had escaped modern slavery and over 300 dependent children. 1 in 4 women arrived at our service either pregnant or with young infants. Two thirds of all women had been forced in sexual exploitation. The horrific experiences they’ve been through are unimaginable.

For many, they didn’t know they were in England until they escaped. Despite freedom, many victims of modern slavery continue to experience extreme poverty and rely on donations to provide for their most basic needs.

Your second hand smartphone could transform their lives.

• Many victims can’t speak English. To rebuild their lives it is vital for them to learn, as it enables them to navigate public transport, communicate with their GP or local authority, or make friends at the local community centre. Hestia has been offered 500 free licenses for uTalk, the language learning specialist app and we now need mobile phones for victims to begin learning.
  
  
• London is an alien place to victims who don’t have access to a map. Many victims struggle to turn up to important meetings such as legal and counselling appointments because with little money for travel they often get lost whilst trying to find their way on foot.
  
  
• Babies grow up so fast. The new mothers in our service have no means of taking photos of them or recording them as they grow – something small – but important in giving meaning to their lives.
  
  
• It can feel incredibly lonely in a big city. The victims we support are isolated with no ability to contact family or friends back home. A smartphone would enable them to make contact for the first time with WiFi connection.
  
  
• Connect with specialist support. Our advocates can set up email accounts for survivors to gain independence and begin to rebuild their life to arrange their appointments and apply for jobs. 

All phones should be: 

• Smartphones clear of all personal data
• In working condition with a charger
• 'Network-unlocked' with no passcode

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How can you help?

Launched in partnership with Britain's biggest language company uTalk, Project Freepost HESTIA enables you to donate your old, unwanted smartphone by post free of charge.

If you've got an old smartphone at the bottom of a drawer, simply pop it in an envelope and address it to "Hestia, Maya House, 134-138 Borough High Street, London, SE1 1LB."

For free postage, add "Freepost HESTIA" on the front of the envelope and post it from a letter box or your local post office.

uTalk is also donating free licences for its language learning app to victims of modern slavery, enabling them reintergrate into society and begin to rebuild their lives.

Patrick Ryan, CEO of Hestia said:

“We are extremely pleased to partner with uTalk to provide life-changing opportunities to survivors of Modern Slavery. Most of us know what it can feel like to be in a strange place and not speak the language. Victims of trafficking are abused and tortured without anyone to ask for help and often without the words and language to do so. After the trauma of being silenced by their traffickers, this partnership will empower survivors by giving them a practical tool to enable them to rebuild their lives and to communicate with others by learning English.”

Read uTalk'S PRESS RELEASE here

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