Since January, 2018 Newsnight has found a shocking 90 cases where child asylum seekers have been incorrectly classified as adults.
In the above report, Helen Johnson OBE, of The Refugee Council 's Head Of Children's Service, explains how children whose age is not believed are locked up by immigration officers in adult detention centres in breach of Government policies and legal guidelines.. This has a devastating impact on vulnerable and traumatised young people who came to the UK in the hope of finding safety. Children experience severe physical and emotional effects of detention, which is traumatic and can last a lifetime.
The mistakes continue to happen. Government records show that at least five children have been detained in the notorious Yarl’s Wood centre in Bedfordshire since the start of 2015. Three of them were eventually classified as between 12 and 16 years old.
Procedures at Yarl’s Wood have also been criticised by the Chief Inspector of Prisons. In 2013, official inspectors wrote in a report on the centre that “some young detainees were age assessed by a chief immigration officer, rather than social services”.
Once inside an adult detention centre, children have struggled to challenge the Home Office’s decision. Many have been left waiting for months to be seen by councils’ child experts.
Holding children under the same conditions as adults are held is inhumane, and must come to an end, they should all be afforded appropriate care and protection they truly deseve.
To find out more, read Navid's story below or discover how the Age Disputes Project is helping these chidren get the support they desperately need.
https://www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/latest/case-studies/navids-story/
