Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 23
23
Accepted
Home Office failed to provide sufficient details on processes for safe asylum room-sharing.
Conclusion
The Home Office said it would come back to us with further details on its processes for deciding who will share rooms but its letter of 18 August added little detail about how the Home Office would ensure people are kept safe, and it largely repeated what was said in our evidence session.71 The letter did add that room sharing was for people of the same sex, and that the Home Office encourages room sharing with family and friends.72 64 Q 87 65 Q 145 66 Correspondence from the Home Office to PAC dated 18 August 2023 67 Q 77 68 Q 71 69 Q 72 70 Qq 74–75 71 Q 85, Correspondence from the Home Office to PAC dated 18 August 2023 72 Correspondence from the Home Office to PAC dated 18 August 2023 The Asylum Transformation Programme 15
Government Response Summary
The government states it disagrees with the committee's 'recommendation' (misunderstanding the item type) and details its extensive existing safeguarding strategy, including staff training, welfare support officers, and a Safeguarding Hub, to ensure the safety and welfare of asylum seekers.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
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.