Recommendation 32

In light of the inadequacies in the current provision of Home Office accommodation to unaccompanied children, it would be difficult for the Home Office to demonstrate that the transfer of a child from local authority care into Home Office accommodation would be in the child’s best interests for the purposes of the UK’s international law obligations under the UNCRC. It would also be difficult to demonstrate that it was compatible with existing domestic law provisions such as section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009. Unless the standards required of Home Office accommodation are amended to bring them in line with the requirements of the Children Act 1989, as we recommend above (see Annex, Amendments 23 and 24), clause 16 should be amended to remove the power to transfer a child from local authority accommodation into Home Office accommodation (see Annex, Amendment 25).