Asylum: Children

(asked on 15th June 2021) - View Source

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what safeguards are in place to protect unaccompanied children who are wrongly diverted to adult asylum support services.


Answered by
Chris Philp Portrait
Chris Philp
Minister of State (Home Office)
This question was answered on 21st June 2021

The welfare of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children is an absolute priority. We are fully adhering to our statutory duties and we have improved both our facilities and the way we deal with arrivals in response to the unprecedented rise in small boat crossings.

Young people are prioritised to ensure the necessary welfare and security checks are completed in the shortest amount of time. After this they are collected by a local authority and cared for by social services.

We have contracted a team of social workers as a temporary measure to support the Kent Intake Unit, with the aim of strengthening the unit’s age assessment and child safeguarding processes.

KIU includes a non-detained facility (called the ‘Atrium’) where asylum claimants are able to wait once their asylum claim has been registered and it has a specific area for minors and other vulnerable customers which is operated by the Refugee Council (NGO) under contract from the Home Office.

If there is doubt about the age of an individual, they will be referred to a Local Authority for a Merton compliant age assessment to ensure they are diverted to the correct support services.

If any concerns about a service user’s age become apparent once they are in asylum support accommodation, the relevant local authority will be informed so they can take appropriate safeguarding action.

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