Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 22
22
Rejected
Home Office lacks clear, detailed plans for ensuring safety in shared asylum hotel rooms.
Recommendation
When we asked the Home Office how it was ensuring the safety of the people it is pairing up to share a hotel room, it was unable to clearly articulate its plans and said that there “might be people for whom it is not appropriate if they share”.67 It said it was looking at the records it holds, at the experience of people who were already living in its estate, and at nationality and language.68 It provided no further detail when we asked specifically whether it would consider mental health.69 We asked if anybody was speaking to the asylum seekers or completing an assessment, as would be the case for a social services placement, and the Home Office said that its providers were “explaining” that they would be moving people into shared rooms.70
Government Response Summary
The government rejected the recommendation, stating it disagrees and that its existing safeguarding strategy, which includes staff training, collaboration with statutory agencies, and a Safeguarding Hub, already ensures the welfare and safety of asylum seekers.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
5.1 The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation. 5.2 The department’s headline safeguarding approach is set out in the safeguarding strategy. There is significant safeguarding information available not provided at the Committee session but set out below. 5.3 The department takes the welfare of asylum seekers seriously and at every stage in the process, ensures that the needs and vulnerabilities of asylum seekers are identified and considered. The department works with a wide variety of stakeholders, including local authorities, Strategic Migration partnerships and non-governmental organisations to deliver sustainable, efficient and high-quality support systems to safeguard vulnerable asylum seekers. All departmental staff interacting with applications receive safeguarding training. This ensures that staff are skilled to identify, respond and take appropriate action to support the vulnerable. 5.4 The department and its contractors work closely with the NHS, local authorities, and non-governmental organisations to ensure that asylum seekers can access the health care and support they need. All asylum seekers have access to free NHS services, the same way as British citizens and other permanent residents. All accommodation providers have a duty and requirement to assist people who need access to healthcare, and all frontline staff are safeguarding trained. All accommodation providers employ staff to be present at accommodation sites as welfare support officers. The department and its accommodation providers have robust processes in place to ensure that where someone is at risk, they are referred to the appropriate statutory agencies (police, NHS and social services) to promote appropriate safeguarding interventions. The department operates a Safeguarding Hub to support vulnerable individuals in accessing these services. Safeguarding Hub staff advocate for an individual’s needs with the statutory agencies to promote appropriate safeguarding interventions. The statutory agencies retain responsibility for all decisions on intervention activity. Any asylum seekers who need assistance with any matter can get in touch with Migrant Help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.