FORCED MARRIAGE · CONSENT · SAFEGUARDING
Forced marriage
Forced marriage is when the freedom to choose is taken away.
Aneeta Prem MBE has worked on forced-marriage prevention and safeguarding since co-founding Freedom Charity with Lord Toby Harris in 2009. She gave oral evidence to Parliament in 2013 during consideration of legislation criminalising forced marriage. Forced marriage is a criminal offence across the UK, although the legislation differs by jurisdiction; it is also recognised as domestic abuse and, where a child is involved, child abuse.
QUICK ANSWERS
Forced marriage: the essential answers
What is forced marriage? A forced marriage is one in which one or both people do not, or cannot, give free and full consent and pressure or abuse is used to make the marriage happen.
What is the difference between an arranged marriage and a forced marriage? Consent. In an arranged marriage both people freely choose whether to marry. In a forced marriage genuine consent is absent.
Is forced marriage illegal in England and Wales? Yes. Forcing someone to marry is a criminal offence and Forced Marriage Protection Orders can be used to protect people at risk. Since 27 February 2023, people under 18 cannot legally marry or enter a civil partnership in England and Wales.
What should a professional do if someone may be at risk? Treat it as a safeguarding concern, follow current statutory and local procedures, consider immediate safety and seek specialist advice. Do not approach the family if doing so could increase risk.
What is Aneeta Prem MBE’s work on forced marriage? Her work through Freedom Charity has included survivor support, school education, professional awareness, public campaigning, media commentary and evidence to Parliament. Her book But It’s Not Fair was written to help young people recognise warning signs and know where to seek help.
For current official guidance and case support, use the UK Government Forced Marriage Unit. Aneeta.com provides general information, not individual legal advice.
Arranged marriage and forced marriage are not the same
In an arranged marriage, both people remain free to say yes or no. In a forced marriage, that freedom has been taken away. A person should not have to be beaten before we recognise that they are being forced.
Can this person make a free and genuine choice without fear of what will happen if they say no?
COERCION CAN BE QUIET
Pressure does not have to leave a bruise.
It may include threats, isolation, surveillance, deception, financial control, emotional coercion, fear of family rejection or responsibility for somebody else’s threatened harm.
A person may be told that a parent will become ill, harm themselves or die if they refuse a marriage or go against family expectations. A threat of self-harm may reflect genuine distress, but where it is used to make another person comply it can also function as coercive pressure.
Can somebody really choose freely if they believe a person they love will be harmed because of their decision?
Consent, capacity and identity
Silence is not consent. Giving in because you are frightened is not consent. Agreeing because you believe you have no realistic choice is not free consent.
A family member cannot provide the free consent required from the person entering the marriage. Forced marriage can also target people who lack the mental capacity to consent and LGBT+ people, including transgender people.
ENGLAND AND WALES
What the law protects
In England and Wales, the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership is 18. It is also an offence to cause a child under 18 to enter a marriage, whether or not coercion is used, including a religious or other ceremony that is not legally binding. Different marriage-age rules apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
In 2025, the UK Forced Marriage Unit provided tailored assistance in 406 possible forced-marriage or FGM cases, including 391 forced-marriage cases. Forty per cent involved people aged 17 or under and 75 involved mental-capacity concerns. These are cases referred to the unit, not a measure of prevalence, and recording categories changed in 2025.
ANEETA PREM · PUBLIC RECORD
The campaign to criminalise forced marriage
Freedom Charity was founded in 2009 with making forced marriage a criminal offence as one of its primary aims. In June 2013, Aneeta Prem gave oral evidence to the House of Commons Public Bill Committee considering the legislation. She argued for criminalisation alongside prevention, education and practical safeguarding.
When the England and Wales offence came into force on 16 June 2014, Freedom launched #Freedom2Choose. The campaign film featured Home Secretary Theresa May with Aneeta Prem, the Forced Marriage Unit, police, the Crown Prosecution Service, a barrister and a survivor, explaining why forced marriage had become a crime. The same 2014 Act also criminalised forced marriage in Scotland; Northern Ireland uses separate legislation.
The Five Freedoms
Forced marriage makes the Five Freedoms question especially clear: can this person choose, refuse, leave, learn and be?
For journalists, researchers and public bodies looking for an evidenced UK forced-marriage expert, commentator or safeguarding speaker, the verified Public Record brings together parliamentary evidence, national conferences, media interviews, education work and independent sources from 2009–2026.
This page provides general public information. It is not individual legal advice and Aneeta.com is not a casework or emergency service.
Sources and related analysis
Official guidance and evidence
- GOV.UK: forced marriage guidance
- Forced Marriage Unit statistics 2025
- House of Commons Public Bill Committee evidence, 20 June 2013
Related analysis on Aneeta.com
- Why I Supported Criminalising Forced Marriage, and What Changed After 2014
- Capacity, Consent and Dishonour Abuse
- Forced Marriage in 2025: Children, Capacity and the Cases We Still Miss
But It’s Not Fair: forced-marriage safeguarding novel and education route