November 2024 

Who is this information for?   

This information is for local authorities in the North West of England, who are supporting separated children and young people seeking asylum in the UK. 

It is possible that children and care leavers seeking asylum could be asked to “report” at an immigration centre. Care leavers whose asylum claim has been refused may be at risk of detention. Planning support with reporting and what to do if the young person is detained should form part of their care plan. Please also see our information sheet on triple planning and checklist for supporting care leavers with reporting appointments.

What is reporting? 

Reporting is a form of immigration control imposed on people without regularised immigration status, requiring them to “sign” regularly in person. Usually this is at a reporting centre run by the Home Office. In Greater Manchester the reporting centre is Dallas Court in Salford. Sometimes people are also asked to report at police stations.  

Who reports to the Home Office, when, and how is a matter of the Home Office’s discretion. People who are told to report will receive a letter called a Bail 201 letter, which also tells them that they may be detained. This is because when the Home Office wants to detain and attempt to remove someone from the UK, they often do so at these routine reporting appointments. This threat means that reporting can be an extremely frightening experience, for adults as well as young people.  

The process of reporting often involves queueing, being searched and scanned, and people report being treated disrespectfully by Home Office staff. It’s important for local authority workers to understand that this can be a negative and frightening experience for young people. 

Who is going to be asked to report?  

Young people over 18:  
When separated children turn 18 without having had an asylum decision, they may be asked by the Home Office to start reporting. It is likely that separated children seeking asylum will turn 18 before their asylum claim is decided, because of Home Office delays. (If they have claimed asylum before they turn 18, their asylum claim should still be processed as a child’s claim.) 

Children under 18: 
The Home Office guidance on reporting says that children under 18 in the asylum system should not normally be required to report. However, there are circumstances where they could, such as between their 17th and 18th birthday.  

It is therefore important that social workers and personal advisers encourage young people to share any paperwork they receive from the Home Office to ensure they understand what is expected of them. 

If a young person’s asylum claim is refused, they might be told by the Home Office that they will need to report more frequently.  

Changing reporting conditions 

Because the Home Office has discretion over an individual’s reporting conditions, they can be changed. Social workers can apply to the Home Office for a reduction in the frequency of reporting. If the young person has an immigration lawyer, they could discuss this with them too. There is more information in the resources below. 

Care planning and triple planning

If a young person’s asylum claim is refused, they are already likely to have increased fear and uncertainty about the future. Being asked to report, and understanding the risk of detention, can make this a more distressing time for them. We therefore recommend triple planning in care planning for children seeking asylum (see our triple planning information sheet) including the fact that they might be asked to report.  

If they have an immigration lawyer, social workers can contact them to ask for reassurance for the young person as to if this is a normal part of the process, or if there is a risk of detention. 

Local authorities should offer additional support to care leavers who are required to report, and create a specific safety plan around reporting. This includes:  

  • Ensuring the young person understands the potential consequences if they do not report when asked to do so 
  • If possible, especially when they first start reporting, accompanying the young person to reporting appointments. If the young person is over 18, the person accompanying them will not be allowed to enter the reporting centre, but can wait outside. This is essential for emotionally supporting the young person and building trust. 
  • Ensuring that a young person reporting has with them: 
    – A written list of emergency contact details. If they are detained, they may have their phone taken.  
    – A photocopy of their paperwork from the Home Office and their lawyer.  
    – Any medication they are taking, and a copy of prescriptions. 
  • Where a young person is not being accompanied to reporting appointments, a professional should check in with them over the phone before and after their appointment time. 
  • A plan should be in place for if the young person is detained, which should be discussed with them in advance. Things to consider include: 
    – Does the young person have an immigration lawyer? What are their contact details? 
    – Contact Bail for Immigration Detainees: 02074569750 
    – See Right to Remain for support services at different detention centres, and information on how to contact and locate the young person. 
  • The Home Office has a policy on adults at risk of immigration detention which has a list of things that might make a person “particularly vulnerable to harm in detention”.  Care planning should explore these vulnerabilities, not only to ensure robust care planning, but because they could be important when supporting a young person to be released from detention.   

Age assessments 

It is essential that the local authority update the Home Office about potential children taken into their care. If there is an ongoing age assessment, they should be treated as a child by the local authority and the Home Office until it is completed.  If the child was initially assessed as an adult and claimed asylum as an adult, the local authority should tell the Home Office that they are a potential child immediately. If a potential child is detained, the local authority should let the Home Office know immediately and organise for their release into local authority care. 

Resources  

Migrants Organise guidance on challenging reporting conditions

Right to Remain toolkit: signing support
Right to Remain toolkit: detention

Bail for Immigration Detainees (BID) contact details

Government casework guidance on Reporting and Offender Management

Government casework guidance on Adults at Risk in Immigration Detention

Click here to download this post as a Word document.

Click here for a checklist for supporting young people with reporting appointments.