15th February 2025
Reported cases of forced marriage are on the rise, while government support for victims is falling. Sophie Church from The House Magazine explores how the trend can be reversed, featuring Karma Nirvana.
According to data supplied in response to a freedom of information request, government funding to NGO partners in the UK and overseas to support forced marriage victims has decreased from £77,500 in 2022/2023 to £63,500 in 2023/2024 and £64,500 in 2024/2025. These include one NGO based in the UK, two in Pakistan, one in Somalia and one based in Somaliland.
This comes as Karma Nirvana, which runs a helpline for honour-based abuse victims, has released figures that show the number of reports of abuse it has received citing forced marriage have risen from 417 in 2022/2023 to 541 in 2023/2024.
At the centre of the government’s forced marriage strategy is the Forced Marriage Unit (FMU), a joint Home Office and Foreign Office body providing support and advice for victims of forced marriage.
According to official statistics, cases in which the FMU gave advice or support to victims of forced marriage decreased each year from 2020. However, the government has admitted figures are “unlikely to be indicative of a decrease in the prevalence of forced marriage in the UK”, for which the FMU’s statistics are “not a good guide”.
“While we recorded a 15 per cent increase in child marriage cases reported to our helpline in the 11 months following the new law [which came into force in 2023], the simultaneous drop in FMU cases [instances in which advice and support are given] raises serious concerns about underreporting and victims not knowing where to turn for help,” says Natasha Rattu, executive director of Karma Nirvana. “This disconnect highlights the urgent need for action”.