Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied children seeking asylum who have not yet received a decision on their case have been waiting for a decision for (1) over two years, (2) 18 months to two years, (3) one year to 18 months, and (4) six months to one year.

The Home Office does not publish this data in the format requested, however we are committed to publishing more detailed figures in future data releases.

We are able to provide a breakdown of total applications pending by duration (±6 months), but we can’t separately identify UASC’s in the dataset. The table has been reproduced below:

Children and unaccompanied children seeking asylum, like anyone else claiming asylum in the UK, can claim in two ways; either at port of entry or at one of the national intake units.

The Home Office takes its responsibility for the welfare of children very seriously, including ensuring that the best interests of the child are a primary consideration in every decision taken in respect of the child. There are stringent statutory and policy safeguards in place in the asylum process for unaccompanied children, in recognition of their additional needs.

While in the UK, unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are looked after by local authorities who have a statutory duty to ensure that they safeguard and promote the welfare of all children, regardless of their immigration status or nationality. Under these arrangements, children are assessed with regard to their individual needs and provided with access to education, accommodation and health services, as would be provided to any other looked after child in the UK.