Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many unaccompanied asylum seeking children have been transferred under the national dispersal scheme in each month since that scheme was introduced.

Annual Figures on the number of claims for asylum from Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC), including by country of nationality, are published quarterly by the Home Office in the Immigration Statistics release. A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics January to March 2016, is available from: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-january-to-march-2016

We introduced the Voluntary National Transfer Scheme on 1 July to ensure a more equitable distribution of UASC across the country. Over 100 UASC have been transferred so far.

We have consulted with every region in England, Scotland and Wales on their capacity. If we are to make the voluntary transfer scheme a success we need more local authorities to participate in the scheme and offer places for unaccompanied children from councils which are caring for disproportionately high numbers.