An Anti-slavery Lent Course

The Clewer Initiative, which has been set up to enable Church of England dioceses and wider church networks to raise awareness of modern slavery and identify victims, has launched a County Lines Lent Course as part of their #spareathought Lent campaign.

The 6-week course focuses on County Lines, one of the most prevalent forms of modern slavery in our country. County Lines exploitation affects thousands of vulnerable children and young people every year, yet many people are unaware of it, or are ill-equipped to spot it.

The aim is to help people reflect on what the Bible says about injustice, oppression, suffering, God’s heart for the poor and the church’s role in protecting victims.

They also hope to provide practical information about County Lines exploitation and equip people to identify children who could be targeted by drug traffickers.

By the end of the course, they hope to inspire people to consider how they can support victims and build resilient communities that discourage this form of modern slavery.

Caroline Virgo, Director, The Clewer Initiative's Mission and Public Affairs Division said:

"We pray that many people will be able to use the Course during the period of Lent to learn, reflect, pray and take action.

"Please pass this information on to any interested parties and consider sharing the link on your social media platforms – we long to spread the word about the course so as many people as possible can benefit from the resource and join us in fighting modern slavery and in particular, County Lines exploitation."

For more information, go to www.theclewerinitiative.org.