Dozens of children who went missing from asylum hotels still unaccounted for years later
Forty people who went missing from asylum seeker hotels as children years ago have still not been found.
By Sky News
Forty people who went missing from asylum seeker hotels as children years ago have still not been found. All but two of them are now adults, and the Joint Committee on Human Rights said in a new report that it is extremely concerned about the cases.
The committee said the Home Office must explain what is being done to locate the missing children, why they went missing and how similar cases will be prevented in future. It also wants progress updates every three months.
England’s Children’s Commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza, described the disappearances as an unacceptable failure and urged the government to set out its response.
The issue follows earlier concerns raised about more than 400 unaccompanied children seeking asylum in the UK who were reported missing from hotels used by the Home Office. Some of those children were as young as 12.
A government spokesperson said children’s safety and wellbeing remain paramount. They said the Home Office accommodation for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children closed in January 2024, and that most children reported missing since then have been located.
The spokesperson added that police are responsible for investigating missing children cases, while the Home Office continues to review records and share information with police, local authorities and safeguarding partners.