Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Tuesday 19 May 2026 by Jill Powell

A husband and wife from Nottingham have been given a suspended sentence after arranging for taking two boys under 18 to Pakistan to be married.

The defendants, who cannot be named to protect the identities of the victims, took the boys to Pakistan when they were 17 with the specific purpose of finding them someone to marry. One of the boys refused a proposed match, but another was paired with a local girl and was married in a Nikah ceremony.

Police were alerted to the marriage following a referral from the young person’s place of education.

The couple at first denied that they had been seeking marriages, but pleaded guilty to carrying out conduct to cause a child under 18 to enter a marriage on 17 February.

They were today, 15 May, sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court to two months' imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, and ordered to do 100 hours' unpaid work.

Emma Cornell from the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Child marriage laws are in place to protect children from the harm done by entering a lifelong commitment at such an early age. These defendants disregarded that protection by taking the boys to Pakistan to be married. The law applies wherever the offending takes place and, on their return, these two defendants were rightly held to account.”

Building the case: Child marriage overseas

The defendants took the two victims abroad to Pakistan to arrange the marriages, with one of them actually taking place. The legislation in England and Wales is in place to protect children and young people who live in this country, regardless of whether they are taken overseas for marriages to be arranged. The laws increasing the minimum age for marriage to 18 came into force in 2023 and introduced an offence of carrying out conduct to cause anyone under 18 to enter into a marriage. The defendants claimed they were not aware of this legislation.

The defendants initially claimed that the visit had been a holiday or family visit. They asserted that the idea of marrying had come from one of the boys, and that they had gone along with his wishes. Analysis of their phones showed that this was not true.

One defendant had several messages on his phone referring to looking for a ‘rishta’, which can mean a spouse or marriage proposal. He had also said in messages to others that he was in Pakistan trying to find his son a wife. The other defendant’s phone showed detailed conversations about arrangements she was making with another family, including making contingency plans when the boy announced he did not like the match they had secured for him. Her phone also had video footage of a wedding ceremony and showed her exchanging money with the family of the bride.

The wedding took place in the form of a Nikah ceremony. While this required to be done in a registered premises to be a legal marriage for UK purposes, the ceremony is binding under Islamic and Pakistani law.
The CPS secured independent advice from an expert in Islamic marriage issues, who confirmed the legal status of the marriage and clarified for the court the significance of the ceremony, including the social and legal constraints it put upon the victims. This expert also provided evidence to confirm to the court that the photographs showed a Nikah ceremony had taken place.

During the sentencing hearing, the prosecution made it clear that, although the defendants had acted unlawfully, there was no force or undue coercion involved. The prosecution also accepted the defendants’ assertion that they had not been aware of the change in law. However, in taking their children overseas to arrange marriages for them, they had broken this law and ignorance of the law is not a defence.

Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Friday 15 May 2026 by Jill Powell

A former imam who carried out a sustained campaign of sexual abuse against women and girls over more than a decade has been jailed.

Abdul Halim Khan, 54, was sentenced to life imprisonment to serve a minimum term of 20 years at Snaresbrook Crown Court today, Thursday 14 May.

He was convicted of 21 offences, including rape, sexual assault and child sexual offences, against seven women and girls between 2004 and 2015.

Melissa Garner, Specialist Prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 

“Abdul Halim Khan abused his position as a trusted religious leader to prey on women and girls over many years, manipulating and controlling them for his own sexual gratification. He used their deeply held beliefs to instil fear and silence them, making them believe their families would be at risk if they ever spoke out. I hope this prosecution sends a clear message that the Crown Prosecution Service will work tirelessly to protect women and girls and bring anyone who commits these appalling crimes to justice.”

Khan was an imam at a mosque in east London and used his position as a trusted religious leader within the community to gain access to his victims and manipulate them.  

He arranged meetings in isolated locations, and even their own homes, where he sexually abused victims under the false pretence of being possessed or disguised as a jinn (supernatural spirit).  

Victims were led to believe that harm would come to them or their families through so-called black magic if they reported the abuse, leaving them feeling unable to come forward for years.  

During the investigation, further victims were identified after the initial reports were made.

Prosecutors worked closely with the Metropolitan Police to build a case spanning more than a decade of offending.

Detective Chief Inspector Jennie Ronan, whose team led the investigation, said“Abdul Khan presented himself as a respectable man who could be trusted. However, this was far from the truth, and he instead preyed upon and took advantage of others. I want to focus on the victim-survivors, who have shown remarkable bravery in reporting Khan and great strength throughout the trial.

"We hope that today’s outcome provides as a measure of comfort as they continue to rebuild their lives and serves as a reminder to anyone who has experienced sexual violence that support is available. We remain absolutely committed to tackling violence against women and girls, targeting dangerous offenders and removing them from London’s streets.”

To support the jury’s understanding of complex evidence involving spiritual beliefs - including references to jinn and black magic, the CPS instructed a cultural expert to provide essential context central to the case.

Special measures were put in place to support the victims to give their best evidence, including pre-recorded cross-examination in advance of the trial.

The CPS has established a dedicated Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit to prosecute complex and challenging cases like this, sharing specialist understanding, helping to build strong cases and increase the number of successful prosecutions. 

Source: Office for Products and Safety Standards  published on this website Monday 18 May 2026 by Jill Powell

The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) is aware of consumer products available in the UK containing sand contaminated with asbestos. These products have been recalled by the businesses that have sold them, and OPSS also expects any further asbestos-contaminated products to be recalled. To ensure their safe disposal, consumers and businesses should follow the advice below.

Consumer advice

Contaminated products that have been identified and are subject to recalls are listed on this OPSS Product Safety Alerts, Reports and Recalls page.

If you have purchased a product on this page, please check the recall notice for the business’s advice on returning or disposing of the product safely. For further information, or questions, contact the retailer you purchased the product from.

If you have concerns about a product that you think might contain asbestos but has not been recalled:

• In England and Wales, contact the Citizens Advice consumer service.
• In Scotland, contact the Advice Direct Scotland consumer helpline.

Disposal guidance for consumers

Businesses should be accepting recalled products at their stores. It is both legal and safe to dispose of these products in household waste if you are not able to return products to store. Please use the following instructions for safe disposal of contaminated products:

• Stop using the product immediately.
• If the sand is still in its packaging, place in a heavy-duty plastic bag, double tape it securely, label it clearly and store in a secure location out of the reach of children.
• If the sand has been used or exposed, clean up sites where the product was used using wet cloths to avoid generating dust. Wear gloves and a mask. Double bag the sand, gloves, mask and cloths.
• Keep children and other people away from areas where the sand has been used until the area has been cleaned.
• Return the product to the store specified by the retailer, who will provide a full refund. If you are unable to, or your product was purchased via an online marketplace, dispose of the product in your general household residual waste.
• For further information, or questions, contact the retailer you purchased from.

Health information

There is no safe level of asbestos in consumer products, though asbestos that is bound within intact products is less harmful than asbestos fibres that are airborne and are small enough to be breathed in. Where asbestos is identified, a product recall is appropriate.

If you or your family have used one of the products containing asbestos listed on the OPSS Product Safety Alerts, Reports and Recalls page, stop using it immediately, as this is the most important step to prevent any ongoing exposure, and follow the recall advice.

Further information can be found at: Asbestos: general information.

Businesses

Product recalls

UK businesses that have sold consumer products contaminated with asbestos are required to recall them.

UK businesses are advised to follow the British Standards Institution’s code of practice for product recalls and corrective actions, PAS 7100, which sets out best practices for businesses to prepare for and manage effective recalls.

Local Authority Trading Standards (LATS) are overseeing the recalls of these products. Both OPSS and LATS have powers to enforce product safety regulations. Find your local Trading Standards office.

Disposal guidance for businesses

You should seek specialist advice from your waste management contractor on the classification and coding, packaging, collection, storage and disposal of recalled products containing asbestos.

Advice on packaging and transport should be sought from a qualified Dangerous Goods Safety Advisor (DGSA).

The Environment Agency is the Government lead for asbestos disposal and waste management advice in England. It has issued a Regulatory Position Statement for manufacturers, distributors, and retailers on storing and de-packaging recalled products that contain asbestos.

Read the statement on products containing asbestos.

The guidance applies in England.

• If you are in Wales, contact Natural Resources Wales.
• If you are in Scotland, contact the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Product testing

OPSS has published a technical advisory note to help businesses test products to determine if they may contain asbestos, and sets out OPSS’ position on the current most appropriate testing methods for identifying asbestos in consumer products that contain sand.

Read the advisory note on testing for asbestos in sand.

Workplaces and schools

Asbestos safety in the workplace

Employers should follow the Health and Safety Executive’s guidance on the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 and management of asbestos in workplace settings.

Read managing and working with asbestos - HSE website

Early years settings and schools

Schools and early years providers are asked to follow the guidance for consumers above on identifying affected products and the correct disposal guidance for their setting.

Source: Department for Education published on this website Thursday 14 May 2026 by Jill Powell

New fund aims to make fostering more accessible and support more people to become carers, as part of wider drive to create 10,000 new foster places.

Thousands more children and young people will benefit from stable, loving homes as the government launches a new £12.4 million Fostering Innovation Fund to make foster care more accessible and inclusive across England.

The Fund will help fostering around modern lifestyles and household structures, by updating models of foster care, which set out how care should be delivered. 

For too long, foster care has been provided on the assumption that people need to be in traditional, married relationships with only one carer working full time to be successful. The Department for Education reforms aim to attract a younger and more diverse mixture of carers as well as improving the experience of fostering for existing carers.

The new fund will support the modernisation of the foster care system, enabling more flexibility in how care is provided, without compromising on safeguarding standards. Fostering helps to give vulnerable young people the best possible start in life, breaking the link between background and opportunity.

The funding will be allocated to Regional Care Co-operatives and fostering hubs, which are operated by Local Authorities. They will be collaborating with a range of partners, potentially including children’s charities and commercial providers to develop and trial innovative new models of foster care 

Children’s Minister Josh MacAlister said:

“Every child deserves the chance to grow up in a safe and loving home, and I’ve been truly inspired by the foster carers I have met who make that happen. This investment will help us bring fostering into the 21st century, moving on from outdated assumptions about who can foster and how care should be offered and opening it up to a wider range of people. This will help us recruit more carers, and change more children’s lives by giving them a stable home.”

Innovation in the fostering sector is already being driven forward in many parts of England. For example, a foster carer with four years’ experience in Manchester was previously limited to one placement due to space constraints in her home. With a £7,800 grant provided through the local Room Makers scheme run by Greater Manchester Combined Authority, she reconfigured her home and will soon welcome siblings.

Other new forms of care being trialled by some organisations include respite or weekend-only fostering, whereby children spend time with foster carers at weekends or for shorter periods during a week. This can support other forms of long-term care, such as a child in a residential care home or being looked after by extended family members.  

These innovative approaches can improve outcomes for children and families and make fostering more appealing to a wider range of people.

Launched during Foster Care Fortnight, the Fund will help Fostering Hubs and Regional Care Cooperatives to expand successful fostering programmes and trial new ways of supporting foster families and children.

This includes opportunities to form partnerships between organisations so they can more effectively test and develop new approaches.

The investment forms part of the government’s wider plans to reform and expand foster care, creating 10,000 additional foster care places over the course of this Parliament.

The fund was first announced in February as part of the government’s Fostering Action Plan, which set out measures to make fostering more flexible, improve support for carers, and update local authority decision-making processes on who can become a foster carer.

The funding will support projects designed to improve outcomes for children and young people, including initiatives aimed at preventing children from entering residential care unnecessarily and helping them remain in family-based settings wherever possible.

The launch forms part of wider activity planned during Foster Care Fortnight, to raise awareness of fostering and encourage more people to consider becoming foster carers.

Successful applicants to the fund are expected to be announced later this summer following the close of the application process.