Policy paper

Response to a report on hotels for housing unaccompanied asylum seeking children, March to May 2022

Published 19 October 2022

The Home Office thanks the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) for this report and is grateful for the ICIBI’s engagement with customers, stakeholders, and officials who operate the hotels temporarily accommodating UASC arriving in Kent.

The Home Office response to the recommendations:

The Home Office should:

1. With immediate effect, prevent individuals without a clear Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check from residing and working within the hotels currently being used to house young people, and for any hotels used by the Home Office in the future. This should be checked routinely by team leaders, and the relevant Home Office operational manager.

1.1 Accepted

1.2 No individuals, apart from the UASC, are residing at any of the hotels and commercial partners have been reminded of the ‘sole occupancy’ requirement of the contractual arrangements which precludes anyone residing or sleeping on site.

1.3 All individuals working directly with the young people accommodated at the hotels have Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service, and all those working/ operating on the hotel sites have DBS clearance. Commercial partners are aware that this is a requirement for everyone working on these sites.

2. Within 1 month, using external expertise if required, undertake a robust assessment of the collective needs of the young people housed in hotels, with due regard to Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) ‘best interests’ principle22, to inform the development of standards, service design and operational delivery, to include the views, feedback, and data from:

- children and young people housed in hotels

- contractor and Home Office staff, particularly Safeguarding Advice and Children’s Champion and the Safeguarding Hub

- management information collected by the operation

- external agencies (local authorities, NGOs, and any other relevant experts).

2.1 Partially accepted

2.2 We partially accept this recommendation and are working in partnership with the Department for Education to identify when, and how best to undertake a needs assessment to inform the operational and service delivery in the temporary UASC accommodation (hotels) during the period until we are able to end their use. The Home Office is committed to ensuring the safety of all young people within the hotels and regular update our operating practices in response to feedback from the young people and key stakeholders. We are partially accepting the recommendation as we are unable to deliver the assessment within the prescribed timescales.

3. Within 3 months, develop a challenge and scrutiny mechanism, drawing on internal and external expertise and the resources outlined in Recommendation 2, to monitor the delivery of the operation with a specific focus on safeguarding children’s welfare.

3.1 Partially accepted

3.2 Assurance and governance structures for the UASC hotel operation are in place but still being developed. The needs assessment as recommended in ‘Recommendation 2’ (see above) will inform these arrangements and once it is completed will be able to inform how a challenge and scrutiny mechanism is best delivered. We are partially accepting the recommendation as we are unable to deliver the assessment within the prescribed timescales.

4. Within 6 months, develop, and begin delivering, a viable and sustainable exit strategy from the use of hotels which acknowledges the Home Office’s s.55 duty and principle of the ‘best interests’ for the child.

4.1 Partially accepted

4.2 We accept the recommendation and will continue to work closely with the Department for Education and Local Authorities to build capacity to avoid the ongoing need for contingency accommodation as quickly as possible.