I absolutely hate clothes shopping. Hate it. In store, I often find myself reduced to furious tears and panic-buying something I don’t really like. And online, I fall in love with dresses and jumpsuits and tell myself they will fit just perfectly, before the inevitable disappointment and predictable popping to the Post Office with a returns label.

Throw in the added confusion of wanting to make ethical purchases, to protect the environment and shop slavery free, and buying clothes becomes a complete nightmare.

Over the last ten years, I have been working on a book about human trafficking and modern slavery here in the UK. Many of us are aware that millions of people around the world are in slavery (an estimated 40 million, according to the International Labour Organisation) but I wonder how many of us can make the link between the nameless, faceless people on the other side of the world and our purchases? And how many of us are aware that the slavery we may associate with nations a world away, could actually be on our doorstep?

Read more here.