Immigration detention of children
In a written statement on the last day before the summer recess of Parliament, the government
announced the closure of Cedars Pre-Departure Accommodation.
Those who has seen the misery of families with small children detained behind barbed wire at
Yarl’s Wood before 2010, rejoiced when one of the first announcements of the coalition
government was the commitment to end the immigration detention of children. In August 2011, the
Cedars building was opened. It is a set of buildings in its own grounds near Gatwick. It was
described by the prisons inspectorate as “an example of best practice in caring for ... some of the
most vulnerable people subject to immigration control”. Three partner organisations worked
together very well to give proper care to the families – the Home Office, G4S, and Barnardo’s. It
was encouraging to see how the G4S staff learned steadily from the Barnardo’s experts how to look
after families and children safely and well.
Cedars was still a form of detention, though without high fences and with the possibility of escorted
trips outside the perimeter; but it was the best form of detention seen in the UK. Each family had its
own maisonette area within the building, and the facilities were good. In his introduction to a 2014
report the Chief Inspector of Prisons wrote: ‘Cedars is a high quality, well managed institution –
and it needs to be. Whatever one’s views on immigration, the distress described in this report of the
families passing through the centre and its potential impact on the children involved is disturbing’.
In January 2016 Stephen Shaw published a Review into the Welfare in Detention of Vulnerable
Persons’. Almost all of his recommendations advocated positive measures to improve welfare. Of
Cedars, he said ‘Nothing I saw caused me to doubt HM Chief Inspector of Prisons’ characterization
of Cedars as “an exceptional facility” and “an example of best practice in caring for ... some of the
most vulnerable people subject to immigration control”. He also said that half of the adults at
Cedars were on self-harm monitoring, saying ‘this speaks eloquently of their vulnerability’.
However, he said that the cost of keeping a small number of families there was excessive, and ‘the
current use of the centre is simply unacceptable at a time of financial austerity’. It was unexpected
to see such a ruling on value for money in a report on welfare. A spate of headlines followed in the
tabloid press, about the ‘luxury immigrant hotel’ costing more than the Ritz.
The Immigration Minster announced on Thursday that families with children would instead be
detained at a ‘discrete unit’ at Tinsley House immigration removal centre, at Gatwick. There is an
existing ‘families area’ in Tinsley House. It is part of the IRC, part of the same building as the adult
facility, and leading off a corridor within it. It is within the barbed-wire fence. It has continued to
hold some families with children, who were detained at the airport and held for a short period in
order to be returned on the next available flight.
If this is to be the ‘discrete unit’, that would be simply a return to detention of children, albeit
governed by the 2014 Immigration Act which set up an independent family returns panel, and
limited the time to 72 hours, or 7 days if authorized by the Minister. If it is to be a new build on the
same site as Tinsley House, much will depend on how separate it is. The 2014 Act defines predeparture accommodation as ‘a place used solely for the detention of detained children and their
families’.
The Minister’s statement on closure thanks Barnardo’s ‘for working with us to ensure that the new
facility continues to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, and builds on the learning and
experience of Cedars.’ In fact the charity has refused to continue its involvement, saying publicly
that ‘we do not believe that the new proposed accommodation is in the best interests of the children
and we have told ministers we cannot support the move’.
When Cedars opened, we were told that its name derived in part from the values which its staff
would work to - compassion, empathy, dignity, approachability, respect and support. It has lived up
to that well, and shown how public, private and third sectors can work together to achieve
something really worthwhile. We await further information about the new accommodation, but
many will be wanting to know how central the interests of children, and their safety, will be in the
new facility.