A recent inspection by HM Inspectorate of Prisons has found that 41% of those held at Yarl’s Wood, an immigration removal centre holding both men and women near Bedford, said they had felt unsafe at the facility.
And they said the atmosphere at the facility near Milton Ernest is “tangibly different” since the last full inspection in 2017, with HM Chief Inspector of Prisons describing the inspection as “concerning”.
The report found there were more detainees and protests, and frustration was fuelled by cumulatively longer periods of detention without progress on immigration cases: in April 2023, 51 detainees had refused to return to their cells, and 13 had subsequently escaped.
Read: Police release photos of wanted Yarls Wood escapees
It was noted that the physical environment had also changed, with the installation of razor wire and prison-style cell doors and vented windows. At the time of the inspection, the facility housed detainees from 48 countries.
The report, which can be downloaded here, has been broadly welcomed by local MPs, leaders and campaign groups.
Donna-Louise Cobban, CEO of Beyond Detention, a National Lottery Community Funded charity that has supported over 720 people held in Yarl’s Wood, told the Bedford Independent: “We welcome the publication of this report from HMIP on Yarl’s Wood IRC, which reflects our experience of the Home Office detaining people for whom the detention estate is unsafe, due to health vulnerabilities.
“We echo what the Inspectorate experienced regarding Home Office policy on immigration detention. Lengthy and indefinite detention and the lack of information about immigration case progression are the main causes of distress for many detainees.
“We see this impact on a regular basis on the people we support at Yarl’s Wood IRC.”
“Concerning”
The report found that within Yarl’s Wood, there was a lack of suitable rooms for people to get together, meaning men congregated in corridors, which some other detainees found intimidating.
There was a high level of “assessed vulnerability” in the centre, including victims of torture, but, said the report, the Home Office did not always pass this information to staff at the centre, which limited their ability to keep these men and women safe.
Inspectors found that at least two psychotic detainees who were not well enough to be detained had been held in the control and separation unit under Rule 40 for extended periods.
Eighty-four per cent of detainees said they had felt depressed while in the centre and 44% said they had felt suicidal. Lengthy and indefinite detention and the lack of information about immigration case progression were the main causes of distress for many detainees interviewed by inspectors.
Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said: “This was a concerning inspection.
“Yarl’s Wood has been through a period of significant change, having been used as a short-term holding facility for those arriving on small boats before returning to its original function as an IRC.
“It was now having to manage a complex and large population of detainees, many of whom were being held for long periods of time with not enough to do.
“Many of the detainees we spoke to expressed not only their frustration but also their distress. Rapid action is needed to make sure that the men and women held in Yarl’s Wood are held in more appropriate conditions and that their immigration cases are processed without delay.”
Security of detainees
North East Bedfordshire MP, Richard Fuller (Conservative), said that HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ observations reflected his own, based on a visit to the facility during the summer.
“The Inspectorate notes a decline in standards concluding: “Overall, while the experience for most detainees was currently adequate, we left Yarl’s Wood concerned about deteriorating outcomes in a centre that was having to manage a complex and larger population of detainees, who were held for longer periods.”
He said it was vital that local residents know that the facility is being well run and is “both efficient and caring in pursuit of its role in removals of foreign nationals with no right to remain; many of whom have committed criminal offences in this country”.
“The Inspectors’ report is right, in my view, to highlight the higher numbers of detainees and to question the adequacy of the facilities and infrastructure provided,” he said.
“If more foreign national offenders, and ones with more serious convictions, are being housed at Yarl’s Wood, there must be improvements to ensure the external security of local residents and the internal security of other detainees.
“I am pleased that the Inspectorate concludes that Yarl’s Wood is “operationally well led” which gives confidence that the recommendations in their report can be enacted.”
He concluded that he hoped the Chief Constable of Bedfordshire Police would be consulted by the Home Office regarding future recommendations and commended the force on its response to the escape of detainees earlier this year.
Bedford’s deputy mayor, Cllr Jim Weir (Conservative), said that he had confidence that the improvements suggested in the report would be acted on to improve faclitities.
“Of course, we are all concerned for the safety and well-being of both the detainees and Bedford Borough residents,” said Cllr Weir.
“It is imperative that improvements are made to both internal and external security measures to ensure everyone remains safe.”
“Unfit for purpose”
The Labour MP for Bedford and Kempston, Mohamad Yasin, told the Bedford Independent: “The report is yet another example of Britain’s broken asylum system and Tory incompetence.
“Yarl’s Wood has long been unfit for purpose, just like this Government and the sooner we get a Government willing to tackle the [immigration] issue firmly but fairly, the better.
“We need more international cooperation to stop smuggler and trafficking gangs, establish return agreements and make sure countries work together to ensure those fleeing persecution and conflict get sanctuary in a manner that reflects the civilised, humane and mature country that we actually are.”
Green Party councillor, Paul Edmonds, said: “Yarl’s Wood has become an icon of this government’s failure to deal with our global immigration challenges.
“This report reads like a litany of failures resulting in these men and women being treated like criminals.
“The reports of ‘assessed vulnerability…including victims of torture’ show that people are being held at Yarl’s Wood who should be welcomed into this country as refugees. These are people who should be welcomed into our communities with compassionate care.
“Yet again, after years of historic red flags, Yarl’s Wood continues to expose the systemic carelessness and cruelty of providing inadequate support to people who came to us for help.
“Rather than a system that punishes people for trying to come to this country, we should be doing far more to make their home countries places they want to stay, dealing with global inequality and taking measures against governments that torture and persecute parts of their population.”
