Resources

This briefing highlights our concerns that Clause 97, if allowed to stand part of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, will remove the proper and necessary checks on the exercise of executive power in the running and management of the asylum accommodation system in England, and will result in serious adverse impacts and harm both for people seeking asylum and for local communities.

The Refugee and Migrant Children’s Consortium is appalled by, and entirely opposed to, the government’s plans to permanently remove people seeking asylum in the UK to Rwanda to have their claims processed, as well as live in Rwanda if their asylum claim is successful. In addition, we are extremely concerned that due to the government’s flawed approach to age disputes there is a significant risk that children will be removed to Rwanda.

This consultation response suggests a range of further ways in which the UK should respond to the mental health needs of refugees, people seeking asylum and survivors of trafficking.

In response to this consultation, we outline what needs to be considered when deciding where to 'disperse' people seeking asylum to, and urge the Home Office to put together a set of minimum standards for dispersal areas to be used as an ongoing reference tool to ensure they those moved to new areas are able to access the services and accommodation they need.

This editorial looks at the government's plans to transfer people to Rwanda to have their asylum claims determined - and the implications of this for the mental health of refugees and asylum-seekers and the health professionals working with this patient group.

This evidence focused on the need for the the Bill and Victim’s Code to be drafted in such a way as to ensure that all victims of crime, including those subject to immigration control, are included. If the Bill is to ensure equal access to justice and support for all victims, it must include a provision that would guarantee secure reporting pathways and prevent automatic data sharing between statutory services and Immigration Enforcement.

In December 2021, BM Trust Ltd submitted in a full planning application for the change of use of the We submitted a response to the planning application for an initial assessment centre for the accommodation of asylum seekers at Jaguar House and Buildings in Badersfield, Norfolk, highlighting our concerns that this accommodation is inherently unsuitable for people seeking asylum, who are a particularly vulnerable population.

This editorial looks looks at recent political events and how "immigration status trumps a patient’s clinical need". Alongside more socially just migration policies, it recommends that "health leaders should also call for better support and supervision" for clinicians working with refugees and migrants.

Spiritual rituals have potential for misuse as a form of control in human trafficking. A lack of understanding of this process can lead to challenges in supporting trafficking survivors. This article is a metasynthesis of systematically reviewed qualitative literature on ritual use in human trafficking, providing insight into ritual practices and their impact.

Together with a number of UK based organisations working to prevent and end trafficking, HBF has made a submission to the Universal Periodic Review of the UK, carried out by the Human Rights Council. This submission focusses on the UK's record on upholding the rights of survivors of trafficking.

The human rights violation of human trafficking and modern slavery could be described as multiple and prolonged traumatisation. This corresponds to the type of trauma identified as most likely to be associated with ‘complex post-traumatic stress disorder’ (CPTSD) as identified in the new 11th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). This review aims to collate the evidence of complex post-traumatic stress disorder in populations that have been trafficked, with the intention to highlight important considerations to be made in terms of managing survivor's health care needs and minimising further traumatisation.

This article in the Forced Migration Review highlights evidence from medical assessments of the negative impact of the UK’s accommodation centres on the health of asylum seekers and calls for a trauma-informed approach to underpin the government’s future strategy in this area.