RSPCA appeal after dead fox on lead found with facial injuries
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THE RSPCA is appealing for information after a dead fox with facial injuries was found on a lead on a Wirral footpath. A member of the public made the shocking discovery on 6 July on the Wirral Circular Trail and contacted the RSPCA. RSPCA inspector Leanne Cragg, who is investigating, said she believes the fox's death is suspicious due to the fact that the fox was on a lead, was wearing a collar and that the facial injuries are consistent with having been used for baiting.

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Anyone with information should contact the RSPCA's appeals line on:- 0300 123 8018, leaving a message for Inspector Leanne Cragg.  She said:- "We don't know for sure how the fox got these injuries but I strongly believe they were caused by the fox being used for fighting with another animal. It is also very suspicious that the fox was found on a lead and wearing a collar so could have been bred in captivity. This poor fox is likely to have suffered before dying and I am keen to find out any information from anyone who knows about this incident so we can look into it further and determine if any wildlife offences have been carried out."

The RSPCA is continuing its vital work rescuing animals during the Coronavirus crisis. To help the RSPCA keep rescuing animals and keep our animal Hospitals and centres running for emergency treatment and round the clock care through these unprecedented times, please donate whatever you can spare at:- RSPCA.Org.UK.

HERE in Merseyside, City Hearts, the national anti trafficking charity whose biggest centre is in Liverpool, is supporting slavery survivor female garment workers trafficked by women known to them. Brave survivors like Sharon who endured the ultimate betrayal.  Sharon was enticed to the UK with false promises, then manipulated into a life of modern slavery, by a member of her own family. She came to the North of England from Ghana with dreams of becoming an accountant.  "My country is beautiful but there are no opportunities for anyone and there is corruption. It's really hard to get a job, especially if you are young. I wanted to be an accountant. I managed to study for an accountancy diploma. But there was no chance of getting any further. To go to University you have to know the right people; it's not about how clever you are. After finishing my diploma I was sat at home, helping my mum and feeling I'd just wasted three years of study. When my cousin, who was living in the UK, told me about her successful life, and promised to help me to get into college near her, I was really I excited.  She said I could stay with her and her family and offered to organise my visa and pay for my flight. People will say this sounded too good to be true. But I had known her all my life; I trusted her totally." says Sharon, now 27.

Sharon arrived one chilly spring day and moved into her cousin's home. She was given a mattress on the floor in the children's bedroom.  Her joy was soon tempered when she was told she would need to wait until September to start college, and asked to work in her cousin's business in the meantime. She says:- "I didn't mind. I felt it was the least I could do to repay her for her kindness. I worked six days a week until late each day, without receiving a penny. I felt very grateful to them. I didn't want to make a fuss or sound ungrateful and my cousin was always saying I didn't need money because I had her. But then I was asked to do the household chores on top of my job, and take the children to School. Without realising it, I had become the family's unpaid servant and totally dependent on them. I would have liked to go out to make friends and find out the place I lived in, but without money it was impossible. I think that was the plan - to isolate me. I became less and less confident."

When the cousin's business collapsed, there was no reprieve for Sharon. She was given false identity papers and a job was found for her. She recalls:- "I didn't have a say in it. They told me I needed to do it to pay for my college course, and living expenses while I studied. I could see their point and went along with it."

Around her household duties, she worked in a clothing warehouse 4 hours a day. Her task was to open the mail order returns parcels and check returned garments hadn't been worn or damaged. She has no idea how much she was earning, because she never received a pay slip. It was sent to the address on her false paperwork, and her wages went straight into her cousin's bank account.-  "She told me she was saving the money for me. But whenever I asked about applying for my college place, she would tell me I wasn't ready. My English wasn't good enough, I needed to be more settled here… There was always a reason. I had worked at the warehouse for over a year when I asked my cousin how much had been saved for me and where the money was. She got very angry and said I owed her money for the paperwork, my airfare and my room in her house. She always made me feel I should be grateful to her."

Eventually Sharon confided in a friend at the factory, who helped her to get her payment details changed at the warehouse. That meant she would receive her next wage. It would give her the means to escape from her cousin:- "I was really frightened; I knew as soon as my wages didn't drop into her account she would realise what I had done. I sneaked out of her house and went to stay with my work friend."

Sure enough, the cousin came to the warehouse and confronted Sharon, then told factory bosses and the Police that it was Sharon who had acted fraudulently. "She said I had stolen her documents and identity. She said I was a thief. My Manager called the Police and I was put in a cell overnight. They were more interested in the fact that I only had a Visitors' Visa which had expired and reported me to Immigration Authorities. I didn't know I had needed a different visa; my cousin had arranged everything. .A document of deportation was issued and I was terrified. I told them I was the victim and wanted to claim asylum."

As soon as the Police released her, she went to ground. With no income and no home, she slept on the sofas of her former workmates for 2 years. Eventually she met a man she formed a relationship with and moved into his home. She told him about her and he took her to a lawyer, who contacted immigration services for an appointment. "I gave them as much information as I could. I told them my cousin had received all of my wages for over a year."

At an initial assessment for claiming asylum, it was decided there were reasonable grounds to identify Sharon as a victim of human trafficking and was referred into the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) the system by which victims of modern slavery are identified and provided with support. Then she was given the Salvation Army's specialist support for victims of modern slavery.

By this time she had a daughter and her relationship had broken down. The Home Office found them an apartment. "I had a place no one could kick me out of. I felt safe. To my amazement I even had a TV. The Salvation Army introduced me to the charity City Hearts almost three years ago."

Her City Hearts caseworker found Sharon a dentist, doctor's surgery and optician and gave her emotional support and counselling. She was then introduced to support services for refugees and asylum seekers and a church, where she made friends.

To support City Hearts, visit:- CityHearts.Global or  send them an email to:- Info@CityHearts.Co.UK.