If asylum seekers or their family members have exceptional needs, it is possible to apply for extra UKBA support. The decision to grant additional support is made at the discretion of the Home Secretary. In reality, the provisions that UKBA can make are limited and rarely cater fully for the special needs of applicants.
The main framework within which the special needs of asylum seekers are met is through community care services delivered by local authority Social Services. Community care services are designed to address additional or special needs. Although there is sometimes disagreement between UKBA and Social Services as to who should take responsibility for supporting adult asylum seekers with special needs, in most cases Social Services are responsible.
In April 2005, the Refugee Council published the results of a study of asylum seekers with special needs, which looked into asylum seekers living in emergency accommodation (now known as ‘initial accommodation’) with special needs.
Although all of the participants taking part in the survey qualified for a community care assessment, only a third had received one. The average waiting time for an assessment was four weeks, sometimes twice as long. Half of those who had received an assessment were still waiting for service provision. The most common cause of delay was UKBA asylum support (formerly NASS ) and the local authority disagreeing about who should take responsibility for the social care needs.
Please note: Any asylum seeker with an outstanding claim or appeal is eligible for a community care assessment and accommodation under Section 21 of the National Assistance Act 1948, if they are ‘in need of care and attention’. A refused asylum seeker is eligible if s/he is lawfully here, for example has applied on arrival in the UK and has temporary admission, or if s/he has a valid outstanding fresh claim. The case of AW v Croydon LBC (2005) confirms this. |
Community care services
Section 21 of the National Assistance Act 1948 (NAA) places a duty on local authorities to provide accommodation and financial assistance to people in the community in need of ‘care and attention’. Local authorities also have additional duties to provide services to adults who need care and attention due to long-term physical or mental health needs, disability, age or other special reasons. They also have the power to support pregnant and nursing mothers. These are all considered community care services.
The 1999 Act excludes asylum seekers from social services where the need arises ‘solely out of destitution or the effects of destitution’ by amending the National Assistance Act. However, it does not affect care provided on the basis of other special needs. So the following asylum seekers should be referred for an assessment under Section 47 of the NHS and Community Care Act 1990:
- Elderly people
- People with disabilities
- People with learning disabilities
- People with mental health needs
- People with HIV or AIDS
- Families (for child protection services, nursery provision, after school clubs, home care services, social work services, free school meals)
Case study: National Assistance Act 1948 In the case of R(on the application of M) v Slough Borough Council [2008] UKHL 58, the Lords held that for a person to be in “need of care and attention for the purposes of s.21(1)(a) of the National Assistance Act 1948, it is necessary for him to need “looking after”. According to the Lords, looking after someone means doing something for a person which he cannot or should not be expected to do for himself, such as house-hold tasks or personal care. They maintained that a“need for care and attention” had to mean more than just a need for accommodation since s.21(1)(a) was not a general power to provide housing.
Soraya's experience Soraya was an Iranian asylum seeker diagnosed with severe depression, feelings of paranoia and post-traumatic stress disorder who had twice attempted suicide. UKBA decided to disperse her out of London,where she was receiving psychiatric treatment, and daily care and supervision from relatives to ensure she did not overdose. A community care assessment was obtained from the local authority social services department who agreed to provide her with accommodation in London under Section 21 National Assistance Act. UKBA agreed to finance support for her children with her. |
A House of Lords ruling in the case of R v LB Westminster ex Parte NASS confirmed that local authorities are responsible for supporting destitute asylum seekers:
- where the asylum seeker’s needs do not arise solely out of destitution or the effects of destitution
- where a support application under Section 21 of the National Assistance Act 1948 or a community care needs assessment reveals care needs
- where some level of community care need is identified, regardless of whether it includes the need for residential accommodation or not; this is to avoid any overlap in responsibility between UKBA and the local authority
If a person appears to have special needs and so may be in need of community care services, the local authority they present to has a duty to carry out a full community care assessment. Asylum seekers should be assessed using the same criteria as UK residents, based on the severity of their need. In an emergency, the local authority may have a duty to house someone while the assessment is carried out. Under the Westminster judgement, local authorities should provide accommodation to destitute asylum seekers who have community care needs, regardless of their severity. However, in practice, UKBA will normally provide accommodation and support where appropriate, and this is then supplemented by Social Services to cover community care needs.
Good practice for Social Services
Services for asylum seekers should be planned with an awareness of the situation they find themselves in. Asylum seekers have little choice about where they can live and may end up isolated from friends or family members. Many have to live in this system for a long time. The stress of the support system and anxiety while waiting for an asylum decision may have long-term effects and even trigger physical or mental health problems. Some may stay with friends and relatives rather than be dispersed. Some may have been made destitute due to Section 55.
Recommendations for Social Services - Recognise possible knock-on effects of the asylum support system - it may create extra needs
- Look at eligibility criteria to make sure that the markers used do not exclude asylum seekers
- Gather information on the numbers of asylum seekers in the area.
- Use the opportunity to plan services for especially vulnerable groups, such as 16-18 year olds
- Set up referral procedures with accommodation providers
- Work closely with regional consortia to identify needs at an early stage
- Build good links with the regional consortia. A recurring problem is asylum seekers being referred backwards and forwards between the local authority designated asylum team and mainstream services. For example, in mental health cases, individuals have ended up not being served at all. It is important that this does not happen in dispersal areas
- Ensure mainstream services (for people with disabilities and older people) are accessible and appropriate for asylum seekers and their accommodation situation
- Develop links with refugee community groups to find out about particular needs of each community and to assist with interpreting
- Assess the needs of asylum seekers and include consideration of their particular circumstances. Examples of poor needs assessments in recent years include asylum seekers being placed in hostels for people with mental health problems when they had no mental health problems themselves and HIV-symptomatic asylum seekers placed in accommodation where they have to share facilities
- Draw on the experience of asylum teams set up within social service departments in the area
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