UK Forced Marriage Unit Refers 100 Children Aged 12 or Under

At least 100 children aged 12 or under were referred to the United Kingdom's Forced Marriage Unit over a five-year period, including 27 children aged five or younger, according to Home Office figures released in late August 2026. The data, obtained through Freedom of Information requests, covers the years 2021 to 2025 and has prompted warnings from campaigners about child safeguarding as schools reopen. The figures represent referrals, which the Home Office defines as information provided about an actual, potential, or suspected forced marriage. They do not confirm that all these children were ultimately forced into marriage. The total includes 62 children aged 10 or under. The Home Office withheld some year-by-year breakdowns and the age of the youngest child referred, citing the risk of identifying individuals. Campaigners stated the numbers are likely an undercount. Dame Jasvinder Sanghera, founder of the charity Karma Nirvana and a survivor of a forced marriage, described the ages as "deeply disturbing." She explained that some children are promised to someone from birth, with the marriage occurring years later.