UK's housing system for asylum seekers plagued by serious deficiencies: Report

LONDON

The current system of providing housing for asylum seekers in the UK is "plagued by serious deficiencies," according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report on Thursday.

In a report titled "I Felt So Stuck," the rights group criticized the British government, saying it is moving forward with plans that "double down on failed hostile environment policies."

"In recent years this system has increasingly been plagued by serious deficiencies, in violation of people’s human rights to housing, food, education, health, and social security," said Human Rights Watch.

The report stated that instead of addressing these problems, the government pursues hostile environment policies by expanding "already problematic" arrangements for asylum accommodation, like the use of barges, repurposed military bases, and similar large-scale settings.

The study, prepared following a joint research by Human Rights Watch and Just Fair, also revealed the experiences of asylum seekers, after their arrival to the UK.

One of them is 17-year-old Sudanese national David A., who arrived in February 2021 on a lorry from France.

The report said police did not believe his age, recorded him as 18, and took him to a shared house in Harlow, southeast England, where he stayed for two months before being moved to a hotel in Swiss Cottage, in north London.

"I was constantly worried about why I wasn’t being accepted. I felt so stuck in the hotel with people a lot older than me. I felt so alone there. I didn’t feel like I could talk to anyone," he told Human Rights Watch.

Also touching on the hotel accommodation, HRW said these are often unfit for children to play and enjoy recreational time.

"This can affect children of any age, from babies and toddlers learning to crawl and use space, to teenagers enjoying recreational activities or exercising."

Citing families' complaints, HRW said they faced a lack of space, the absence of dedicated facilities, and isolation.

"In one example, in Hounslow, west London, a hotel had no appropriate facilities for children to play until the local council instructed the hotel to provide a playground in response to repeated complaints from the families living there."

HRW also pointed out the safety issue at hotels and hostels, housing migrants, by mentioning some examples of reports regarding sexual harassment of women and attacks.

The report called on the government to retreat from its "wrong approach" by using places like barges or military barracks to house asylum seekers and end the use of hotels for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

"Unaccompanied children should be placed in housing that offers the care and protection to which they are entitled," it noted.