An NHS mental health specialist who took in a Ukrainian refugee was reported for modern day slavery after she asked her guest to help out more with the dishes – as she warns would-be hosts to ‘think twice’ before offering up their homes.
Hannah Debenham, 42, of Uckfield, Sussex, was under investigation for two months following the accusation, before the case was dropped this week when no supporting evidence was found.
The mother-of-two was asked to ‘voluntarily’ attend Eastbourne police station where she was questioned by a modern day slavery inspector, which she branded ‘the worst day of my life’. Police also spent two hours at her home with her husband.
Chief Inspector Gavin Patch of Sussex Police defended his force’s action today, telling MailOnline the investigation was ‘expedited as quickly as possible’, adding that it takes any report of slavery ‘very seriously’.
The Ukrainian mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, complained to police that she was ‘expected to clear up and tidy up the house for little to no money under the disguise of the Ukrainian settlement scheme’, according to the police report.
Recalling being interviewed by police, Ms Debenham told MailOnline: ‘It was just devastating. We just wanted to help. If I was charged I would have had to declare that and it would have been a permanent impediment to my career.
‘They also spoke to my husband and told him that I could face life in prison if I was found guilty.
‘I’ve been an NHS mental health specialist for 15 years and have often worked with people being questioned and charged by police. It was the worst thing that has ever happened to me.’
Ms Debenham said her solicitor described the action by Sussex Police as an ‘outrageous overreach.’
The Ukrainian family had been living with Ms Debenham for just three weeks when the accusation was levelled.
The Homes for Ukraine scheme has been blighted by issues from the start, with host families regularly falling out with their guests due to deep cultural differences – while scores of Brits were left out of pocket by delays to their £350 payments, promised by the government for each refugee family taken in.
