Local authorities could save billions by streamlining immigration issues for care leavers
Published by Professional Social Work magazine, 10 August, 2022
Taking early action to help young care leavers facing uncertainty over their immigration status can lead to major savings, a new report published by the National Children’s Bureau has found.
Early support before children turn 18 improves lives and avoids years of limbo for children whose immigration status is often overlooked.
The research, funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation, followed four charity projects over three years. Each was led by charities working with local authorities to support young people leaving care with insecure immigration status.
At least 18,934 looked-after children and care leavers in England are estimated to have unresolved immigration status according to recent statistics.
There are three main categories of children affected:
• Unaccompanied young people seeking protection: including unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) and victims of human trafficking
• Young people with a non-asylum immigration issue who are not EU citizens: including young people raised in the UK by their families but who were subsequently taken into care
• Young EU citizens in or leaving care: who may have been taken into care due to concerns about their welfare and have citizenship of an EU country
Young people are at risk of losing entitlement to housing, benefits and legal aid if they are not given the right support while still in the care of the local authority.
Researchers said early support to resolve immigration status not only helps young people move smoothly into adulthood, it also protects their welfare and avoids spiralling costs through more costly later interventions.
The NCB evaluation outlined how it cost £101,111 due to poor legal advice to support a young person who had been in the UK since the age of six, who needed accommodation and subsistence support for five years,
By contrast it cost £7,191 for another young person to be supported with the right advice on their application.
Researchers estimate that savings could be as much as £100,000 for just one young person. If these figures are multiplied by the number of young people with insecure immigration status supported by the local authorities, the potential savings run into billions.
The executive summary of the evaluation points out: "Local authorities, with the support of charities, can avoid the vast majority of these costs by acting early to address young people's immigration status before they turn 18."
Holly Donagh, director of Strategic Learning, Insight and Influence at Paul Hamlyn Foundation, said: “This research shows that embedding voluntary sector expertise on migration within local authority children’s services improves outcomes for young people with insecure immigration status. Early intervention is key, so that immigration issues are identified and resolved before a young person turns 18.
“It also saves significant sums of money for local authorities because the charities support young people to resolve their immigration cases more quickly, and avoid years of unnecessary accommodation and legal costs.”