At least 100 children under the age of 12 have been referred to the Government’s forced marriage unit in the past five years, shocking new Government figures have revealed.
The data, obtained by a freedom of information request, has raised concerns ahead of schools reopening – with one campaigner warning “there will be missing children”.
The total disturbingly includes 27 children under the age of five, Home Office figures obtained by the Press Association revealed.
Forcing someone to marry is a criminal offence across the UK and in 2023 the legal age of marriage was raised from 16 to 18 in England and Wales.
Referrals can be made to the forced marriage unit (FMU), which operates across the UK, by police, social services and education professionals, friends, family members, colleagues or victims themselves who might seek support and guidance.
Dame Jasvinder Sanghera, who ran away from her Derby home aged 14 when faced with the prospect of a forced marriage, said the number of children under the aged of five was “deeply disturbing”.
She added that, in some cases, a child can be “promised to somebody from birth”, with the marriage taking place many years later.
She said: “I know that when schools open in September, there will be missing children.
“The opportunity to identify them was pre-school holidays. Is somebody going to ask where they are, or are they simply just going to go off school roll?
“Or children will come back engaged or even married.”
The data covered the years between 2021 to 2025, but some years were not disclosed due to the very small number of individual involved, which could potentially allow them to be identified.
But the figures show that at least 100 children up to the age of 12 were referred across the five-year period, of which 62 were aged 10 or below, with 27 aged five or under.
The Home Office noted that a referral means some details were provided about an actual, potential or suspected forced marriage, but does not necessarily mean a forced marriage has taken place.
Dame Jasvinder, who received a damehood for services to the victims of child, forced marriage and honour-based abuse, said the true level of forced marriage is likely to be higher as there is “inevitably going to be a high number of children and adults whose situations never reach statutory services”.
Dr Rakib Ehsan, a social policy analyst, agreed, telling GB News that “many of these cases never reach the statutory services”.
“What this has exposed is the dark underbelly of modern, multicultural Britain,” he told The People’s Channel.
The academic warned against public institutions being afraid to confront issues such as forced marriage.
He said: “What we need to really challenge is the culture within certain public institutions, statutory services, for fear of being accused of racism and being bigoted against certain communities. What they need to do is prioritise their duty of care.”
Dame Jasvinder, a charity founder, said it was the “tactics of perpetrators” to hide behind accusations of racism.
“So they will try to put you on the back foot. ‘This is our culture. This is our religion. You’re being racist’ or whatever, to put you on the back foot, to make you look the other way.”
Encouraging teachers and professionals to report concerns, she added: “Cultural acceptance does not mean accepting the unacceptable.”
Dr Ehsan said “glamour feminism” often focused on how “women are treated in sort of the higher echelons of more glamorous industries” at the expense of more challenging problems.
“But when it comes to the nitty gritty of traditional feminism, challenging issues such as forced marriage, many liberal progressives, they are nowhere to be seen,” he added.
The Home Office said forced marriage is “not a problem specific to one country, religion or culture; there is no archetypal victim or perpetrator, and no 2 cases are the same”.
The figures also show there were nine referrals in 2022 of children aged 12 or under which had no overseas element, with the potential or actual forced marriage taking place entirely within the UK.
The Home Office did not give data for the other years, as there were between zero and five cases in each age group, meaning there was the risk of individuals being identified.
The department also declined to provide the age of the youngest person referred to the unit in the last five calendar years, saying this could potentially lead them to be identified and that disclosure “could potentially deter others coming forward”.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “There is nothing more important than the safety of our children.
“Our strengthened keeping children safe in education guidance provides staff with robust information to help identify different types of abuse and harm – including abusive behaviour such as forced marriage – and clearly sets out what all school staff should know and do, and how to respond to any concerns about a child.
“Our new RSHE (relationships, sex and health education) curriculum will also teach pupils from this September about positive relationships, staying safe, recognising and reporting risks and abuse – with different forms of abuse addressed sensitively and clearly at appropriate ages.”