4.13 Forced Marriage

1. Introduction and Definition

A forced marriage is one where one or both parties do not or cannot consent to the marriage.  Pressure may be applied to agree to the marriage, but, under the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022 it is a criminal offence to do any acts for the purpose of causing a child (before their 18th birthday) to marry, whether or not any forms of coercion take place.

The pressure put on children to marry against their will can be:

• physical: for example, threats and physical violence or sexual violence;
• emotional and psychological: for example, making someone feel like they are bringing ‘shame’ on their family.

Forced marriage can happen to boys and girls (although most cases involve girls) and there is no ‘typical’ victim of forced marriage.

Forced marriage can take place anywhere in the world, including in the UK. In many cases forced marriage involves a potential partner being brought into the UK from overseas or a British person being taken abroad for the forced marriage, often without them knowing that they are going to be married. Forced marriage of any person, regardless of sex, age, disability, ethnic origin or sexual orientation, is illegal in the UK (see Section 5, Forced Marriage Offences).

Forced marriage is very different to an arranged marriage, which is where families of both parties take a lead in the arrangements for the marriage, but they are free to decide whether they want the marriage to go ahead or not.

2. Reasons Given for Forced Marriage

People who force others into marriage often try to justify their behaviour as ‘protecting’ their children, building stronger families and preserving so-called cultural or religious beliefs. However, the act of forcing another person into marriage can never be justified on religious grounds: every major faith condemns the practice of forced marriage.

Some of the key motives given for forced marriage are:

• to try to control someone’s sexuality (including alleged promiscuity, or being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender) – particularly the behaviour and sexuality of girls;
• to try to control someone’s behaviour, for example, drinking alcohol or taking drugs, wearing make-up etc;
• preventing what is seen as unsuitable relationships, for example outside the ethnic, cultural, religious, class or caste group;
• protecting ‘family honour’;
• responding to pressure from family, friends or their community;
• attempting to strengthen family links;
• in order to gain financially or reduce poverty;
• making sure land, property and wealth remain within the family;
• protecting apparent cultural or religious ideas;
• making sure that there is someone to care for a child or adult with special needs, when parents or existing carers are unable to fulfil that role;
• to help people from overseas claim for UK residence and citizenship;
• long-standing family commitments.

3. Impact of Forced Marriage

Victims trapped in, or under the threat of, a forced marriage can be very isolated. They may feel there is nobody they can trust to keep this secret, and they have no one to speak to about their situation – some may not be able to speak English.

People who are forced to marry find it very difficult to leave the marriage, and girls may be subjected to repeated rape (sometimes until they become pregnant) and domestic abuse within the marriage. In some cases, victims suffer violence and abuse from extended family members and are forced to do all the household jobs and / or are kept under virtual ‘house arrest’ and not allowed to leave the home without a family escort.

Both male and female victims may feel that running away is their only option. For many leaving the family can be very hard. They may have little experience of life outside the family and worry about losing their support network. Also, leaving their family (or accusing them of a crime, or asking the police or the council for help) may be seen as bringing shame on their ‘honour’ and on the ‘honour of their family’.  Those who do leave often live in fear of their own families, who may go to considerable lengths to find them and bring them back home.

Victims of forced marriage, their siblings and other family members are at risk of harm – particularly if they are found to asked for help or are planning to leave the marriage.  Victims can face the possibility of ‘honour’-based abuse, rape, kidnap, being held against their will, threats to kill, being abducted overseas and even murder.

4. Taking Action – When there is a Risk of Forced Marriage or a Forced Marriage has Taken Place

The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is available to talk to frontline professionals handling cases of forced marriage. It also offers information and advice on the wide range of tools available to tackle forced marriage, including how the law can be used in particular cases, what assistance is available to British victims in different countries and how to approach victims.

4.1 One Chance Rule

All practitioners working with suspected or actual victims of forced marriage should be aware of the “one chance” rule. This is that they may only have one opportunity to speak to a victim and may only have one chance to save their life.

If someone discloses that they are in or at risk of a forced marriage, it should never be dismissed as just a ‘family matter’. For many people, asking for help from an agency is a last resort and so all disclosures of forced marriage must be taken seriously.

4.2 Practice guidance in all cases

• Take immediate action to safeguard the child. See Immediate Protection chapter;
• Contact the Forced Marriage Unit as soon as possible for advice, including whether a Forced Marriage Protection Order is appropriate (see Section 5.1, Forced Marriage Protection Orders);
• Make a  safeguarding referral (see Referrals chapter);
• As forced marriage is a crime, it should also be reported to the police. In an emergency call 999;
• See the child on their own, in a private place where the conversation cannot be overheard;
• Gather as much information as possible to establish the type and level of risk to the safety of the child. Find out whether there are any other family members at risk of forced marriage or if there is a family history of forced marriage and abuse (see also Safeguarding Adults Procedures).

Do NOT:

• Go directly to the child’s  family, friends, or those people with influence within the community, as this will alert them to your enquiries and may place the person in further danger.
• Attempt to be a mediator or encourage mediation, reconciliation, arbitration or family counselling.

A multi-agency response is vital.

REMEMBER – Younger siblings might be at risk of being forced to marry when they reach a similar age. Appropriate action may be needed to safeguard younger siblings.

5. Forced Marriage Offences

The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 made it a criminal offence in England (Wales and Scotland) to force someone to marry.

This includes:

• taking someone overseas to force them to marry (whether or not the forced marriage actually takes place);
• doing anything to force a child to marry before their eighteenth birthday;
• being involved in the marriage of someone who lacks the mental capacity to consent to marry (whether they are pressured to or not).

Forcing someone to marry can result in a prison sentence of up to seven years.

The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022 amended the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 so that that it is an offence to do any acts for the purpose of causing a child to enter into a marriage before their eighteenth birthday (whether or not the conduct amounts to violence, threats, any other form of coercion or deception). 16 to 17-year-olds are no longer able to marry / enter a civil partnership at all. (Previously, under the 2014 Act, forced marriage was only an offence if coercion was used  to cause someone to marry, or if the person lacked mental capacity to consent to marry).

5.1 Forced Marriage Protection Orders

Anyone threatened with forced marriage or forced to marry against their will can apply for a Forced Marriage Protection Order (FMPO). Relatives, friends, voluntary workers, police officers and local authority staff can also apply for a FMPO, see Apply for a Forced Marriage Protection Order.

The order is to protect a person from being forced to marry. The details of each order will be specific to the case, for example the court may order someone to hand over the person’s passport or reveal where they are if they cannot be found.

Breaching a FMPO can result in a prison sentence of up to five years.

6. Information Sharing and Confidentiality

To protect victims of forced marriage, practitioners may need to share information with other agencies such as the police.

See Information Sharing chapter

7. Record Keeping

Keeping records of forced marriage is important. These may be used in court proceedings.

Staff should keep records of all actions taken, including the reasons why particular actions were taken. There should be a recorded agreement of which agency has agreed to each proposed action, together with the outcomes of the action.

Records should:

• be accurate, detailed and clear, and include the date;
• use the person’s own words in quotation marks;
• document any injuries.

Even if forced marriage is not disclosed, a record of the concerns may be useful in the future.

All records should be kept secure, and only accessed by staff directly involved in the case. This is particularly important for victims / potential victims of forced marriage, to make sure no one could pass on confidential information to a victim’s family.

If no further action is to be taken this should be clearly documented, together with the reasons.