The Refugee Council has published a report exploring the dangers of determining the age of young asylum seekers at the UK border. The report highlights the cases of 233 children supported by the Refugee Council from January to December 2021, 94% of whom the Home Office deemed to be adults and housed with other adults. The children in these cases had no access to support or education and were at risk of abuse and neglect. Recommendations include: the government should collate and publish statistics around age disputed young people treated as adults and later found to be children, including outcomes.
Read the news story: Hundreds of refugee children are being mistakenly judged as adults and at risk of abuse and neglect due to ‘hasty and woeful’ Home Office decision making – Refugee Council report
Download the report: Identity crisis: how the age dispute process puts refugee children at risk
Source: The Refugee Council
Date: 30 September 2022
