A support service to help victims of modern slavery will be trialled in Bucks in March.

The six-month project will be set up by Bucks County Council’s community safety team with funding from Thames Valley Police.

It comes after a two-month inquiry by the county council’s transport environment and communities select committee into what more the council could do to protect vulnerable people from becoming victim to modern slavery, and to help those who have suffered at the hands of unscrupulous exploiters.

The pilot will be run by the Rahab project, a Reading charity that has years of experience in raising awareness and supporting people who have become victims of exploitation, and which gave evidence to the Select Committee's inquiry.

Inquiry chairman Steve Lambert, who laid the inquiry findings before the select committee on Tuesday this week, said he was delighted the pilot would be starting in March.

He said: “The inquiry was concerned that while there are an estimated 2,500 victims in the Thames Valley, there's no understanding of how bad the problem is in Buckinghamshire.

“The pilot project will not only help victims of exploitation, but also provide a window on to the scale of the problem here.

“It will raise awareness, offer support, and help those affected by exploitation, or thought to be at risk, to regain control of their lives.”

Mr Lambert said the inquiry group would meet again later this year to review the project and recommend how the county council can develop the work based on the needs identified by the pilot.

The inquiry group will make recommendations to the council’s cabinet about training and awareness across the organisation, recording victim referrals and alerting the Home Office, identifying modern slavery risks in forward plans, and publishing an anti-slavery statement on the council's website.

Select committee chairman David Carroll said: “This is an evil crime that affects adults and children, and we have a key role and responsibility to work with agencies to root it out and protect the innocent victims.”