Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how old each the 116 unaccompanied migrant children missing from Home Office funded hotels are; and for how long each of those children (a) were housed in hotels before they went missing and (b) have been missing.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The UK is experiencing an unprecedented increase in the number of people making life-threatening journeys to cross the Channel. These boats are often carrying unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) and this has placed unprecedented pressure on the National Transfer Scheme. Out of necessity and with the children’s best interests in mind, we have arranged for them to be accommodated on an emergency and temporary basis in hotels whilst placements with local authorities are being vigorously pursued.
We have safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in emergency interim hotels are as safe and supported as possible, whilst we seek urgent placements with a local authority. Young people are supported by team leaders and support workers who are on site 24 hours a day. Further care is provided in hotels by teams of social workers and nurses.
The Home Office has no power to hold children in hotels or any temporary accommodation if they wish to leave. To minimise the risk of a child going missing, records of children leaving and returning to the hotel are kept and monitored. Support workers accompany children off site on activities and social excursions, or where specific vulnerabilities are identified.
Any child going missing is extremely serious, and we work with the police and local authorities to seek to urgently locate them and ensure they are safe.
Since July 2021 to 19 October this year, there have been 391 missing episodes of young people from the Home Office UASC Hotels (the term missing episodes is used as the same young person may go missing on more than one occasion).
As of 19 October, 222 young people are missing - please see table below. Please note that the data is taken from a live information database and therefore is subject to change as that system is updated.
Age When Went Missing | No Of Days Accommodated in Hotels for Before They Went Missing | No of Days They Have Been Missing For |
|
17 | 7 | 339 |
|
17 | 0 | 333 |
|
15 | 9 | 331 |
|
17 | 4 | 330 |
|
16 | 9 | 272 |
|
17 | 1 | 234 |
|
17 | 0 | 231 |
|
17 | 1 | 212 |
|
16 | 1 | 210 |
|
17 | 1 | 185 |
|
17 | 1 | 185 |
|
16 | 0 | 186 |
|
17 | 0 | 186 |
|
17 | 1 | 185 |
|
17 | 1 | 185 |
|
17 | 4 | 181 |
|
16 | 3 | 181 |
|
17 | 0 | 170 |
|
17 | 1 | 169 |
|
17 | 0 | 169 |
|
17 | 0 | 165 |
|
16 | 2 | 155 |
|
17 | 0 | 153 |
|
17 | 5 | 151 |
|
17 | 2 | 147 |
|
17 | 5 | 144 |
|
17 | 1 | 139 |
|
16 | 0 | 138 |
|
17 | 5 | 136 |
|
16 | 2 | 121 |
|
16 | 5 | 120 |
|
17 | 6 | 118 |
|
17 | 4 | 116 |
|
17 | 1 | 113 |
|
17 | 4 | 109 |
|
15 | 5 | 107 |
|
17 | 17 | 107 |
|
17 | 1 | 105 |
|
17 | 2 | 100 |
|
17 | 1 | 97 |
|
17 | 1 | 97 |
|
17 | 1 | 97 |
|
17 | 0 | 95 |
|
17 | 1 | 92 |
|
17 | 1 | 92 |
|
15 | 3 | 91 |
|
17 | 5 | 89 |
|
17 | 1 | 90 |
|
15 | 0 | 86 |
|
16 | 1 | 85 |
|
17 | 8 | 84 |
|
16 | 10 | 82 |
|
16 | 1 | 80 |
|
16 | 1 | 80 |
|
17 | 0 | 78 |
|
17 | 2 | 78 |
|
17 | 2 | 77 |
|
17 | 4 | 76 |
|
16 | 2 | 76 |
|
17 | 2 | 76 |
|
17 | 3 | 76 |
|
17 | 1 | 76 |
|
16 | 1 | 76 |
|
17 | 2 | 74 |
|
16 | 3 | 72 |
|
17 | 2 | 71 |
|
17 | 5 | 71 |
|
16 | 2 | 71 |
|
16 | 2 | 71 |
|
17 | 3 | 69 |
|
16 | 6 | 69 |
|
15 | 5 | 70 |
|
17 | 3 | 68 |
|
15 | 3 | 68 |
|
17 | 2 | 66 |
|
17 | 1 | 66 |
|
16 | 10 | 66 |
|
16 | 2 | 65 |
|
16 | 1 | 64 |
|
17 | 2 | 64 |
|
17 | 2 | 64 |
|
17 | 3 | 64 |
|
17 | 1 | 63 |
|
17 | 3 | 63 |
|
17 | 0 | 63 |
|
17 | 3 | 62 |
|
17 | 1 | 59 |
|
17 | 15 | 60 |
|
17 | 1 | 60 |
|
16 | 1 | 60 |
|
17 | 15 | 60 |
|
16 | 4 | 58 |
|
17 | 4 | 58 |
|
17 | 4 | 57 |
|
17 | 18 | 57 |
|
17 | 1 | 56 |
|
15 | 0 | 56 |
|
17 | 1 | 56 |
|
17 | 0 | 56 |
|
17 | 0 | 56 |
|
17 | 1 | 55 |
|
17 | 3 | 55 |
|
17 | 3 | 55 |
|
17 | 2 | 55 |
|
17 | 9 | 55 |
|
17 | 21 | 55 |
|
17 | 2 | 55 |
|
16 | 3 | 54 |
|
17 | 2 | 54 |
|
17 | 2 | 54 |
|
17 | 2 | 54 |
|
17 | 7 | 53 |
|
17 | 1 | 53 |
|
17 | 3 | 53 |
|
16 | 3 | 53 |
|
16 | 3 | 53 |
|
17 | 2 | 52 |
|
17 | 2 | 52 |
|
17 | 3 | 52 |
|
17 | 3 | 52 |
|
17 | 4 | 52 |
|
17 | 1 | 52 |
|
17 | 2 | 52 |
|
17 | 3 | 52 |
|
16 | 10 | 52 |
|
17 | 1 | 53 |
|
15 | 4 | 51 |
|
15 | 4 | 51 |
|
16 | 4 | 51 |
|
16 | 2 | 51 |
|
16 | 3 | 51 |
|
16 | 6 | 50 |
|
17 | 3 | 50 |
|
17 | 3 | 50 |
|
17 | 3 | 50 |
|
17 | 3 | 48 |
|
17 | 3 | 48 |
|
17 | 15 | 48 |
|
17 | 15 | 48 |
|
16 | 3 | 48 |
|
17 | 0 | 45 |
|
17 | 5 | 45 |
|
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support (a) Hourglass and (b) other charities that provide advice to older victims of domestic abuse.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We know that domestic abuse affects a wide and disparate group and that a “one size fits all” approach is not appropriate to support all victims. Whilst anyone can suffer from domestic abuse, for older victims, abuse may be more hidden and disguised, or compounded by other age-related factors such as ill health.
We understand the importance of specialist and ‘by and for’ services (specialist services that are designed and delivered by and for the users and communities they aim to serve) in providing the tailored support that victims and survivors of domestic abuse need. We work closely with and fund organisations providing this vital support, including the charity Hourglass. In 2021/22, the Home Office provided Hourglass over £200,000 to support their work in enhancing their helpline, providing casework support, and training specialist IDVAs. For 2022/23, we have provided pro-rata funding for an extended 8 months.
In July 2022, we published our Domestic Abuse Statutory Guidance which will support frontline services in identifying and responding to domestic abuse, including recognising unique barriers and experiences that some victims, including with protected characteristics or complex needs, may face.
The guidance follows on from the landmark Domestic Abuse Act 2021, and our Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan, published in March 2022, which invests over £230 million of new funding to tackle domestic abuse, with over £140 million to support victims. This includes over £47 million in ringfenced funding for victims’ services.
Our Domestic Abuse Plan also commits to, where possible, offering multi-year awards to funding to organisations supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse to support smaller organisations, including ‘by and for’ services, to offer a stable service to victims and survivors. The VAWG National Statement of Expectations, and Commissioning Toolkit, published alongside the Plan, supports commissioners to increase provision of ‘by and for’ and specialist services.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when Afghan refugees referred by the UNHCR will begin arriving in the UK under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) commenced on 6 January 2022, providing up to 20,000 women, children and others at risk with a safe and legal route to resettle in the UK.
We are working closely with UNHCR to begin receiving referrals under Pathway 2 of the ACRS. Under this Pathway, UNHCR will refer individuals and families based on an assessment of protection needs. Further detail will be set out in due course.
The pace of actual arrivals in any particular period will depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR and the availability of suitable accommodation and support in the UK.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of Afghan refugees that will be resettled in the UK following referral by the UNHCR.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) commenced on 6 January 2022, providing up to 20,000 women, children and others at risk with a safe and legal route to resettle in the UK.
We are working closely with UNHCR to begin receiving referrals under Pathway 2 of the ACRS. Under this Pathway, UNHCR will refer individuals and families based on an assessment of protection needs. Further detail will be set out in due course.
The pace of actual arrivals in any particular period will depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR and the availability of suitable accommodation and support in the UK.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the average length of stay of asylum seekers in initial accommodation; and what steps she is taking to ensure that initial accommodation is being used for short term stays only.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office monitors the length of stay in Initial Accommodation and Contingency Accommodation on a regular basis.
The asylum accommodation system is under enormous pressure because of the significant and sustained increase in asylum intake over the last 12 months and the build-up of the population as a result of Covid-19 related measures. This has resulted in over 25,000 asylum seekers being accommodated in temporary contingency accommodation, such as hotels. This is not acceptable; it is not fair on the taxpayers, and it does not offer the right solution for communities or those seeking asylum; it must change.
That is why I wrote to all Local Authorities on 13 April 2022 to set out plans for Full Dispersal. This will reduce and then eliminate the use of hotels for asylum seekers by moving to a full dispersal model for asylum accommodation. This will mean expanding our existing approach of using private rental sector housing to all local authority areas across England, Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to review the minimum standards of welcome packs provided to asylum seekers.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office provides initial accommodation to asylum seekers to ensure they are not left unsupported if otherwise destitute. They are given free, furnished accommodation with food, toiletries, and other essentials, and a weekly cash allowance to cover other living needs such as clothing. This support is routinely reviewed.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the quantity and quality of the (a) shoes, (b) underwear, (c) toiletries and (d) other essential basics provided to asylum seekers arriving in the UK in the welcome packs issued by initial accommodation providers; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure that basic standards of dignity are met.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office provides initial accommodation to asylum seekers to ensure they are not left unsupported if otherwise destitute. They are given free, furnished accommodation with food, toiletries, and other essentials, and a weekly cash allowance to cover other living needs such as clothing. This support is routinely reviewed.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce the waiting time between asylum seekers being granted section 95 status and receiving an Aspen card.
Answered by Kevin Foster
When an asylum seeker in full-board initial accommodation (where there is Migrant Help physical presence) has been granted section 95 states an Aspen card will be issued within 4-6 working days. Where individuals are in other accommodation locations they will be sent Aspen cards by Royal Mail post, once issued.
We have undertaken improvement work to reduce the waiting time by introducing twice weekly reporting and ensuring prompt data sharing with Migrant Help.