Children of trafficked couple should be placed for adoption in England – judge

Two children born in England after their parents were trafficked from Slovakia should be placed for adoption in England, a High Court judge has decided.

Mr Justice Baker said it was not realistic to return the children – a girl approaching her third birthday and a boy approaching his second – to Slovakia.

The judge, who sits in the Family Division of the High Court, announced his decision in a written ruling after analysing the case at a family court hearing in London.

He said the children could not be identified, but the parents had lived in Bournemouth and Bournemouth Borough Council had responsibility for the youngsters’ welfare.

Mr Justice Baker said the family’s background is “sad and disturbing”.

He said the couple married in Slovakia four years ago and are both in their 30s.

The woman is Hungarian and of “Roma origin”.

She was raised on the street in Slovakia as part of a homeless family and is illiterate and has learning difficulties.

The man is also Hungarian and has a “low IQ”, said the judge.

Mr Justice Baker said the couple told how they had been victims of people trafficking.

The woman said they had arrived in Dover, Kent, had escaped from traffickers and then travelled around England before ending up in Bournemouth.

She gave birth in May 2013 and in May 2014.

The children were placed in temporary foster care in July 2014 after social services staff became concerned about conditions in the family home, domestic violence and the woman’s mental health.

Mr Justice Baker said the couple were evicted from their home in early 2015 and returned to Slovakia.

He said their whereabouts are now unknown.

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