The latest independent review into Yarl’s Wood Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) has highlighted the challenges it has faced since being repurposed as a men-only facility.
This month, the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) for Yarl’s Wood Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) released its 2022 annual report, its first since the facility near Milton Ernest was repurposed as an IRC and Residential Short-Term Holding Facility (RSTHF) for men only.
The report suggests this change has led to a growth in violent incidents, as well as damage to the fabric of the building.
The 2022 annual report focuses on how “frustration over the lack of progress with cases and length of detention is causing unrest.
“This is particularly true for men who have already served a prison sentence, only to be further detained in an IRC.”
The report recommends to the Home Secretary that there should a time limit introduced for immigration detention.
The IMB also comments on how “the inexperience of some staff has led to a number of complaints of a minor nature about officers’ conduct from detained men, some of which were upheld.”
Concern over this is highlighted by the three complaints made about officers’ conduct in 2022 and concerns over how “vulnerable people are still being detained, despite the Board’s previous recommendations.”
“Most staff are professional in their conduct”
However, the report recognises how “most staff are professional and skilled in their conduct.”
Other positives from the inspection include:
- The centre has generally managed challenging situations well and provides a fair and humane environment.
- There is good identification, support, and supervision of those identified with mental health and other vulnerabilities.
- The continued high quality of healthcare provision.
Regarding the report, Paul Harris, of the IMB Yarl’s Wood, said, “This has been a very challenging year for the centre with its re-purposing as an IRC for men.
“There has been an increase in violence between residents and assaults on staff, often caused by the men’s frustration at how long they have been detained.
“For the most part these incidents have been dealt with fairly and humanely.
“The IMB cannot stress enough how important it is that for the wellbeing of the men and the safety of all concerned, the length of stay is reduced by improving processes related to asylum status and/or removal.
“The IMB is concerned that it continues to see the detention of vulnerable persons, with poor information coming from prisons about the mental health and vulnerability of men being transferred to Yarl’s Wood.”
Emotional and practical support
Beyond Detention is an organisation that works with people detained in Yarl’s Wood, as well as those post-detention, offering emotional and practical support.
In the last year, Beyond Detention supported over 900 men, with a combination of drop-in sessions and weekly befriending visits.
Donna-Louise Cobban, the CEO of Beyond Detention told the Bedford Independent: “We have successfully adapted our approach to our support services following the re-purposing of Yarl’s Wood IRC.”
She said they echoed the concerns of the IMB over the length of detention the men experience.
“We call for the Home Office to reduce the time period that people are detained for, to increase the amount of suitable accommodation needed so that people can leave sooner on immigration bail and to re-look at the systems for detaining FNO.”
Michael Guy, the Director at Serco – the private firm that runs Yarl’s Wood IRC on behalf of the home office – agreed that 2022 had been a challenging year with, “a significant change in the population in the Centre.
“I am pleased that the Independent Monitoring Board recognises that the team has done a great job adapting to these changes and that Yarl’s Wood is a safe environment for those detained where people are treated fairly and humanely.
“At the same time, we know that we have more to do to meet the challenges that we face.”
