Source · IMB Annual Report

London STHF

Year: 2024 Published: 5 Jul 2024 Type: Prison · Cat STHF Recommendations: 21 Key concerns Positive findings

The London STHF IMB report highlights significant concerns regarding the treatment and conditions of detainees for the reporting year ending January 2024. Despite some positive observations in staff conduct and minor amenity improvements, critical issues persist with data provision for vulnerable adults and use of force, extended detainee waits in unsuitable facilities, and systemic failures in interpretation services and access to medication. The Board urges resolution of these long-standing problems.

Positive findings

The Board noted that holding rooms generally provide a safe environment, with most inductions conducted to a high standard, and DCOs treating vulnerable people and children with care. The appointment of AeroMed paramedics at Heathrow has been widely welcomed, and most escorted removals were handled with calm, compassionate approaches. Improvements were seen in complaint handling processes and the consistent supply of newspapers and children's activity items.

Key concerns

19 items

Safety Repeated Since July 2023 we have not been provided with the necessary data to monitor vulnerable adults and those at risk of self-harm, or the use of force, contrary to the Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) the IMB has with HO and BF.

Estate/Conditions Repeated The child-sized benches with an adult-height table in the main London City Airport holding room have been replaced. The problem persists in the family room, where they pose a risk of injury to detained people.

Staffing Repeated Insufficient numbers of Border Force officers sometimes result in long waits in the Controlled Waiting Areas.

Resettlement/Release Repeated Asylum seekers (adults and children) who have been bailed sometimes face long waits for Clearsprings (the company contracted to provide transport and accommodation for asylum seekers) to pick them up. Unavailability of accommodation or transport is often given as the cause.

Equality/Diversity Repeated Not all residents are offered a translator upon arrival into immigration detention. Where English is not their first language, they should be offered this, regardless of whether or not an officer believes that the level of English is of a sufficient standard.

Equality/Diversity Repeated Delays and unavailability of certain languages in The Big Word translation service can cause problems for inductions and further communication afterwards.

Equality/Diversity Repeated In most of the inductions monitored, the detained persons were not reminded that they had the right not to disclose certain information, in line with Rule 21 of STHF rules.

Regime/Time Out of Cell Repeated The holding rooms are not equipped for stays over 24 hours but people do sometimes have long stays, often overnight, without sufficient mattresses and blankets. The Board would like to see a significant reduction in the number of people having these long stays. It currently stands at 4.4%.

Regime/Time Out of Cell Repeated The temperature in the holding rooms, both at London Heathrow and London City Airport, is sometimes too low for people sitting in a room for an extended period and DCOs are unable to control it directly. This often causes considerable discomfort for the detained people who complain of being cold even when blankets are supplied. Thermometers have been placed in Terminal 3 holding rooms.

Estate/Conditions Repeated The agreed upgrade of the family room and shower facilities for the main holding room in Terminal 5 has still not started. However, Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) now has a schedule for updating all the holding rooms. During the time covered by this report, the proposed plan had not been shared for IMB input. (The plans were subsequently shared on 09.04.2024).

Regime/Time Out of Cell Repeated Those held in the CWAs have no or very limited privacy, other than in Terminal 4, where a thin partition affords privacy. The CWA at Terminal 2 appears to be too small for the number of people regularly being held there.

Estate/Conditions Repeated Although agreed, toilet seats in holding rooms at Heathrow have still not been installed.

Regime/Time Out of Cell Repeated In past reports, we have recommended that DCOs are reminded to engage regularly with people during their long periods of detention because people do not remember everything they have been told during their induction. This year again, we observed people who would have benefited from a reminder of what was available to them.

Regime/Time Out of Cell Repeated Lack of internet access still causes problems with translation devices and prevents passengers who struggle to communicate verbally to interact with their environment. This is a particular problem in Terminal 2. The promised internet trial, escalated in 2022, has still not taken place.

Equality/Diversity Repeated The Disability Review has not taken place and IMB members have witnessed wheelchair users being denied access to the holding rooms. This would appear to be contrary to the provisions of the Equality Act 2010.

Safety Repeated The Board has observed that some children had extended waits in the CWA. There are no facilities for children in the CWAs and the Board would like to see these children being accommodated in the family holding room instead.

Complaints/Property Repeated Complaint forms are not always replied to in full. Whilst detained, individuals have contact with different agencies during the detention period and complaints are about their overall experience with BF and C&C. We would like to see replies to complaints collated from different agencies and sent as one response.

Complaints/Property Repeated The quality and tone of responses are variable and we are concerned that agencies may be missing opportunities to learn from complaints and improve practices.

Healthcare Repeated People detained at London City Airport and Eaton House still do not have access to their own prescribed or over-the-counter medication.

Recommendations

21 items · 20 repeated

#	Recommendation	Addressee
1	The Board would like to see access to Wi-Fi for detained people across all the holding rooms. The trial promised two years ago has still not taken place. Repeated	Home Office
2	The Board would like the lack of signal in Terminal 2 to be urgently addressed, so that a translation device can be used to communicate with detained people. Repeated	Home Office
3	Eaton House and London City Airport urgently need a workable solution for administering personal medication. This issue has been raised for many years now, including at Ministerial level. Repeated	Home Office
4	The Board recommends that more officers be deployed at peak times to avoid unnecessarily extended periods of detention in the controlled waiting areas and in the holding rooms. Repeated	Home Office
5	The Board has observed that some children had extended waits in the CWA. There are no facilities for children in the CWA, nor is the environment comparable to that in the family room. The Board would like to see these children accommodated in the holding room instead. Repeated	Home Office
6	Unaccompanied minors are not always allocated a responsible adult when they are in the CWA. We would like each minor to be accompanied by a responsible adult. Repeated	Home Office
7	The Board would like a small group, accompanied by a higher officer, to visit the CWAs, as agreed in writing by BF last year, and now request that this is an unannounced visit rather than one scheduled in advance. Repeated	Home Office
8	A solution needs to be found to give people waiting in the CWAs more privacy, and the CWA in T2 needs to be enlarged. Repeated	Home Office
9	The holding rooms are not equipped for stays over 24 hours and the Board would like to see the current 4.4% of people experiencing these long stays decreases significantly. Repeated	Home Office
10	The Board is of the opinion that one person or a team should be made responsible for sending out a consolidated reply that incorporates replies to the complainant from all agencies. Repeated	Home Office
11	We have experienced long delays in receiving responses for some rota reports. We would like timely responses so that we can be assured that our concerns are being addressed. At the time of writing, we are waiting for responses on eight reports for the reporting year.	Home Office
12	The Board stopped receiving Safer Detention Reports in July 2023 and despite many requests, these have not been forthcoming. This means that we do not have access to the data to enable us to monitor Suicide and Self Harm Warning Forms, Vulnerable Adult Warning Forms and Use of Force. After repeated requests at every Board meeting, we were eventually told that we would not be receiving the reports. This concern has been escalated and we have been told that the information will be forthcoming. At the time of writing this report, March 2024, we still have no information from July 2023 to January 2024. According to the Data Sharing MoU between HO and the IMBs (August 2020), we should be notified by the supplier (C&C) of Use of Force without delay and Suicide and Self-Harm Prevention on a weekly basis. We would like to see regular monthly reports containing meaningful information in order to monitor the treatment of vulnerable people effectively Repeated	Other
13	We repeat the recommendation that the detention contractor should ensure that DCOs use The Big Word interpretation service for inducting non-English-speaking passengers and that they should not assume that passengers with a limited grasp of English really understand what they are being told. Repeated	Other
14	Delays and unavailability of certain languages in The Big Word translation service need to be addressed. Repeated	Other
15	During inductions, detained people should be reminded that they have the right not to disclose certain information, such as marital status and religion in line with Rule 21 of STHF rules. Repeated	Other
16	As mentioned in last year's report, the maintenance of showers in all terminals should be prioritised so that they remain functional at all times. Repeated	Other
17	The temperature problems in the holding rooms, both at London Heathrow and London City Airport, need to be resolved. The Board would like to see DCOs be given some form of control, either by being able to directly adjust the temperature or by asking someone to adjust the temperature at their request. Repeated	Other
18	The Board has been asking for toilet seats in all terminal holding rooms for the last few years and we would like to see this issue finally resolved. Repeated	Other
19	In past reports we have recommended that DCOs should be reminded to engage regularly with people during their long periods of detention because people do not remember everything they have been told during their induction. This year again, we observed people who would have benefited from a reminder of what is available to them in the holding rooms. Repeated	Other
20	The Board would like to see C&C staff trained to deal with wheelchair users, to ensure that detained people with disabilities have equal access to the facilities available in the holding rooms as per the Equality Act 2010. Repeated	Other
21	We would like to see shorter collection waiting times for those seeking asylum and being transferred to asylum accommodation. Repeated	Other

Other reports for London STHF

2023 Published 1 Aug 2023 · Self-harm 0 · Concerns

Report details

Establishment: London STHF
Type: Prison · Cat STHF
Report year: 2024
Published: 5 July 2024
Recommendations: 21

Service providers

Airport Authority

Heathrow Airport Limited

Asylum Accommodation & Transport

Clearsprings

Border Control

Border Force

Facility Management

Mitie Care and Custody

Government Department

Home Office

Interpretation Services

The Big Word

Medical Services

AeroMed

Source links

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