Recommendation 26

HM Government Acknowledged

appropriate to do so, and suitable alternative accommodation has been secured. Providers are required to give advance notice to service users and under normal operations this is at least seven days. In accordance with Public Health advice, throughout the pandemic period, it has been necessary for only a very small minority of our service users to move accommodation. In respect of the relocation of service user in Glasgow, the Home Office and Mears have engaged extensively with stakeholders in the city to discuss their concerns regarding the necessary movement of service users from serviced apartments to alternative premises. We accept that Mears’s local engagement and communication was not as thorough or as timely as it should have been in this instance. We will continue to work with local partners to investigate and evaluate their wider concerns regarding the provision of service in this area and will ensure any operational lessons are shared with other providers as part of our continuous improvement board. 10 Home Office preparedness for COVID-19 (coronavirus): institutional accommodation: As we have set out, we have worked closely with Public Health authorities, and we and our providers are in regular contact with the local health authorities in each of the areas where hotels are being used to help facilitate the appropriate service provision in line with the guidance and funding assurance they have received. Where new hotels are brought into use, we have liaised in advance on the service to be delivered. The Home Office has a suite of systems, processes and protocols in place to support the delivery of the asylum accommodation and support services and there are a range of mechanisms that provide information on how different elements of the services are performing. Since the start of the new AASC & AIRE contracts we have been working to establish a more consistent and consolidated approach between providers that gives better structure and visibility to this information. While progress has been disrupted by the onset and impacts of COVID-19, we remain committed to developing this work into a comprehensive assurance framework that will ensure it is transparent how each element of service delivery is assured. In relation to the assurance of safeguarding responsibilities, there are currently no plans to introduce a contractual KPI to measure the myriad safeguarding requirements delivered across the various elements of accommodation, transportation, and support services. However, the Home Office and our providers have in place mechanisms, including individual safeguarding frameworks, which are overseen by a dedicated Safeguarding Board. In August 2020 we established a National Safeguarding Forum in partnership with Local Authorities and Strategic Migration Partnerships to enhance understanding of each body’s policies and responsibilities, and how to ensure these worked together, at a strategic level. This includes the sharing of existing framework documents and will provide an opportunity for LAs and SMPs to feed into Asylum Support safeguarding strategy and operational practice as valued partners. We will provide the Committee with progress updates on this work as it progresses.