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Mandatory comprehensive Rule 34 and Rule 35 training

Brook House Inquiry · The Brook House Inquiry Report · Issued 19 September 2023 · Addressed to: Home Office

Government responseHome Office: Accepted, fully or in part (not specified) (Jan 2025)

DeliveryHome Office says in progress (Jan 2025)

Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry

●Inquiry recommendation

The Home Office (in collaboration with NHS England as required) must ensure that comprehensive training on Rule 34 and Rule 35 of the Detention Centre Rules 2001 is rolled out urgently across the immigration detention estate. Staff must be subject to refresher training, at least annually. Attendance must be mandatory for all staff working in immigration removal centres and those responsible for managing them, as well as GPs and relevant Home Office staff. Consideration must be given as to whether such training should be subject to an assessment.

Brook House Inquiry, The Brook House Inquiry Report · 19 Sep 2023 Source PDF →

Published evidence summary

AI-generated evidence summary

The Inquiry recommended mandatory annual Rule 34 and Rule 35 training across the detention estate. In January 2025, Dame Angela Eagle, Minister of State at the Home Office, stated in a written parliamentary answer that the recommendation had been accepted or partially accepted and was "on track for closure by summer 2025" (Dame Angela Eagle response, Jan 2025; Dame Angela Eagle, Jan 2025). In September 2025, HM Inspectorate of Prisons found that despite training being delivered to medical professionals, the quality of most Rule 35(3) torture reports remained poor, although the quality of most Rule 35(1) reports was good (HM Inspectorate of Prisons, Sep 2025).

AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 5 Oct 2026.

About this summary
This recommendation applies across many organisations. The record above reflects central policy activity; adoption in individual organisations may vary.

Government response

●Home Office · Accepted, fully or in part (not specified) · 15 Jan 2025

Words of: Dame Angela Eagle, Minister of State, Home Office, written answer to Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP, House of Commons, 15 January 2025 (UIN 23170)

30 out of the 33 recommendations made by the Brook House Inquiry have been accepted or partially accepted.

Response document: Mistreatment of Detainees at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre Inquiry (written question UIN 23170)

Site note: The written answer gives this sentence once, for 30 of the 33 recommendations together: every recommendation except 7, 19 and 30, which it says were rejected. It does not say which of the 30 were accepted in full and which in part, so the site records "Accepted, fully or in part (not specified)". The same words are recorded on recommendations 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 32 and 33. Recommendations 1, 2 and 3 are among the 30 but are not given this row, because the Minister's letter of 22 May 2025 states a position on each of them.

Earlier statement from Home Office (1)

●Home Office · Under consideration · 19 Mar 2024

Words of: Home Office, Government response to the public inquiry into Brook House Immigration Removal Centre (CP 1041), March 2024

6.4.3. Careful consideration has been given to training linked to Rule 34 and Rule 35 of the DC Rules 2001. NHS England is developing interim clinical guidance to support GPs undertaking Rule 35 assessments and reports. Once the Rule 34 and 35 and AaR policies have been reviewed, NHS England will commission training to further support clinicians’ understanding of their responsibilities under the revised rules. Information is also included within initial training courses (ITCs) to promote awareness amongst all new contracted service provider staff.

Extract from: Government response to the public inquiry into Brook House Immigration Removal Centre

Site note: CP 1041 is organised by ten key issues, not by recommendation, and states no position on any individual recommendation. Its only general statement of acceptance is that "The government has carefully considered and accepts the broad thrust of the recommendations". The words "in principle" do not appear anywhere in the document.

Delivery

●Home Office says in progress · 15 Jan 2025

the remaining 13 (recommendations 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 31, 32 and 33) on track for closure by summer 2025

From: Mistreatment of Detainees at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre Inquiry (written question UIN 23170)

Site note: One written answer of 15 January 2025 addresses all 33 recommendations in groups: it names each recommendation in one of four groups and says nothing further about any of them individually. It does not say which of the 30 it describes as "accepted or partially accepted" were accepted in full and which in part.

Site note: The source gives this passage once, for the 13 remaining accepted recommendations. The same words are recorded on recommendations 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 31, 32 and 33.

What other bodies have found

In their own words. These do not change the delivery statement above.

●HM Inspectorate of Prisons · 18 Nov 2024

The waiting time for a Rule 35 appointment was just under two weeks, with two appointment slots a day available. PPG GPs were undergoing Rule 35 training as part of their induction.

From: Report on an unannounced inspection of Brook House Immigration Removal Centre by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, 5-22 August 2024

Site note: HM Inspectorate of Prisons reports on the Rule 35 process at Brook House here; it does not name this recommendation, or any of the Inquiry's recommendations. The site places the passage against the recommendation it speaks to.

Published evidence

●HM Inspectorate of Prisons · 3 Sep 2025

Summary by this site of the published finding

3.15 Despite the delivery of Rule 35 training to medical professionals, the quality of most Rule 35(3) reports on torture was still poor. Most lacked necessary detail, medical assessments were limited, and some did not contain an assessment of the impact of ongoing detention on the health of the detainee. Conversely, the quality of most Rule 35(1) reports we saw was good and contributed to better Home Office assessment of the risk of detention on detainees’ health.

Read the finding in full3.15 Despite the delivery of Rule 35 training to medical professionals, the quality of most Rule 35(3) reports on torture was still poor. Most lacked necessary detail, medical assessments were limited, and some did not contain an assessment of the impact of ongoing detention on the health of the detainee. Conversely, the quality of most Rule 35(1) reports we saw was good and contributed to better Home Office assessment of the risk of detention on detainees’ health.

Report on an independent review of progress at Brook House IRC (September 2025)View source →

How this page is built

The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.