Children’s watchdog report – Unaccompanied children in the asylum system

The children’s watchdog for England said that their research into the operation of the United Kingdom asylum system had found hundreds of unaccompanied children and young people being left ‘in limbo’, where they had been given final permission to remain but were not yet old enough to gain legal employment or claim benefits.

Other key findings in the report included: that there was an unresolved conflict between the leaving care and immigration legislation; that legal aid changes were making it harder for lawyers to act in the best interests of the child; that no single agency owned the duty to ensure that unaccompanied children secured legal representation; and that the prospect of detention (if refused leave to stay) meant that some young people disengaged from services and went underground, leaving them more vulnerable.