The Salvation Army has been protecting and caring for survivors of slavery since our early beginnings in the 1880's. Today The Salvation Army provides invaluable specialist support for all adult victims of modern slavery in England and Wales, through a network of safe houses, outreach support and other services to help them rebuild their lives after exploitation and move to living independently and in freedom.

Two survivors of modern slavery, Fauzi* and Lima* who are currently receiving support from The Salvation Army have chosen to join Team Sally Army and skydive to raise vital funds to help other survivors and encourage other people to sign up for this challenge. Please donate to Fauzi and Lima, who have already shown tremendous bravery in sharing their stories, to give them a welcome boost in taking on this Skydive challenge.

Here’s why they want to help.

Fauzi was tricked into traveling to Qatar with false promises of well-paid work to help support his impoverished family back in Uganda. Forced to work 18 hour shifts day in day out in factories and construction sites with no breaks to eat or drink, Fauzi was often too exhausted to cook when he returned to the filthy, overcrowded camp he shared with 100’s of other men. Despite becoming ill, he didn’t give up and finally managed to get his passport back and escape by getting a position as an international volunteer with the Scouting movement. This brought him to the UK where he found the courage to talk about what had happened to him and was referred to The Salvation Army for help. Fauzi now lives in a safehouse run by The Salvation Army where his support worker is helping him to rebuild his life and overcome the fallout of his exploitation on his mental and physical health. Fauzi still worries about providing for his family in Uganda and finds it hard to trust people but is now more confident about his future.

Fauzi said:

*names changed to protect identities

The specialist support programme run by The Salvation Army is designed to preserve the dignity of survivors, protect and care for them in safe accommodation. But a modern slavery survivor not only needs immediate support but sustainable support. It costs just £50 for a counselling session. By raising £500 you could pay for 10 specialist and life-changing counselling sessions to help and support the mental welfare of survivors like Fauzi* and Lima*.

£10 could buy a gift pack of toiletries to welcome a survivor into a Modern Day Slavery Survivor Care Contract (MSVCC) safehouse

£20 could buy a bus pass to enable a survivor to begin the process of re- engaging with normal daytime activities

£60 could purchase a mobile phone and sim card when survivor first comes into the MSVCC service, enabling them to contact their service entitlements ie: GP, solicitor, counsellor, support workers etc

£100 could buy clothing and shoes including socks, underwear, T-shirt and jogging when a survivor arrives at a safehouse with no clothing

£200 could enable all the survivors of a safe house to enjoy and celebrate Christmas together including each survivor receiving a small gift

£200 could provide baby clothes, equipment including a pushchair for a survivor who has a child born to a mother being supported in a safe house

£500 could purchase household items including white goods when a survivor moves into their own home

£1,500 could fund 10 survivors on various activities in a safehouse including cooking, arts and crafts and other therapy courses

Fauzi – full story

Fauzi was born in a town in Uganda, bordering Kenya. His mother bought him and his four siblings up on her own, having to work multiple jobs to keep the family afloat. Money was always short. The family rarely ate more than once a day and there weren’t funds to allow Fauzi to continue with his education past secondary school. Wanting to help support the family, Fauzi told his mother he would go to Kampala in neighbouring Kenya to find work as this he had heard of people going abroad and earning lots of money.

A friend then recommended him to someone he knew who was rumoured to have lots of work available in Qatar in the run up to the Football World Cup in 2022. Fauzi went to meet the man in his busy office, where he was promised that he would get well-paid employment in Qatar, in sales or customer services, working five days a week with accommodation and food provided. He was told he would need a passport and some medical tests. However Fauzi could not afford to pay for them so the agency offered to arrange everything, explaining he would be able to pay them back with his earnings within a few months once he started work.

Shortly afterwards Fauzi was told that his documents were ready and his travel was booked for the next day. He started to be suspicious when his documents contained a negative COVID test which he had not taken. He was then given the names of people to report to at immigration when he arrived in Qatar. These men escorted him and 20 other men from Uganda through the airport, where they waited to be picked up and taken to their accommodation.

Now Fauzi was becoming seriously concerned. They arrived a dirty and overcrowded camp where hundreds of men were living, sharing just one bathroom and sleeping 25 to a room with just a blanket and no bed. Homesick and anxious, Fauzi called home and his mother begged him to return but he had neither ticket nor money to do so.

The next day his documents were taken from him, supposedly for safe keeping, and he was taken by bus to start work, not in sales but as a cleaner.

It was at this point that the Fauzi realised that he was stranded because as a cleaner he couldn’t hope to earn the money needed to pay off his debts, help his family or even get back to Uganda.

Things went from bad to worse. He and the other men were forced to work from very early in the morning to late at night, with no food or drink provided. Fauzi was only able to drink by sneaking water from the toilets without the supervisors noticing as this was considered as taking a break and would result in his pay being docked. Sometimes they worked on building sites; sometimes in factories and they were watched every moment of their shifts which often lasted 16 to 18 hours with no breaks allowed. By the time Fauzi got back to his accommodation at night he was too tired to eat and soon became ill with skin infections and chest pains. For months all his salary, apart from a small allowance to buy food, went straight to pay off his ‘loans’.

Fauzi was not going to give up. He went every day to the office, where he could see cupboards full of passports, to demand his documents back. Finally they gave in and, with his passport in his hands, Fauzi found an opportunity to apply for a position as an international volunteer with the Scouting movement and shortly after this found out he had been successful in being offered a place

Fauzi he had been too frightened and emotionally drained to report his current living and working conditions on his application form. However once he had received a visa to enter the UK as a volunteer, he found the courage to talk about what had happened to him and was referred for help as a victim of modern slavery. Fauzi now lives in a safehouse run by The Salvation Army where his support worker is helping him to rebuild his life and overcome the fallout of his exploitation on his mental and physical health. Fauzi still worries about providing for his family in Uganda and finds it hard to trust people.

Fauzi has responded amazingly well to the help he’s received and showed outstanding resilience, positivity and determination. In recent months he has successfully applied for asylum in the UK, overcoming the shortfall in Legal Aid solicitors by navigating the complicated process himself. He is feeling more confident about his future. He said:

He is delighted to take up the opportunity to participate in The Salvation Army’s Jump for Freedom Skydiving activity to raise funds for its work with survivors of modern slavery like himself. He explains his reasons for wanting to help in this way.

Fauzi hopes that by sharing his story and setting the example, he might inspire others to fundraise for The Salvation Army in this exhilarating way. He said:

Doing a skydive to fundraise for The Salvation Army's work with survivors of modern slavery is an incredible way to make a tangible difference in the lives of those who have endured unimaginable hardships. Your bravery and commitment can provide essential support and resources for survivors as they rebuild their lives. Plus, the thrill of the skydive itself adds an extra layer of excitement to your fundraising efforts. So go for it – take the leap and make a meaningful impact.”