To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what pathways are available for asylum seekers housed in hotels to access mental health support; and what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the services available for those hotel residents.
Answered on
26 September 2022
The number of referrals to the Home Office by Migrant Help during the period 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2022 was 11,808. This will include individuals who have been referred more than once. This figure is based on local management information and is subject to change.
The Asylum Safeguarding Hub forms a link between the Home Office and those statutory agencies who hold the legal responsibility to support a vulnerable customer.
Safeguarding Hub staff advocate for an individual’s needs with the statutory agencies to promote appropriate safeguarding interventions. The statutory agencies retain responsibility for all decisions on intervention activity.
The Home Office and its accommodation providers have robust processes in place to ensure that where someone is at risk they are referred to the appropriate statutory agencies of the police, NHS and social services, to promote appropriate safeguarding interventions.
The Home Office and its contractors work closely with the NHS, local authorities and non-governmental organisations to ensure that people can access the health care and support they need. Asylum seekers have access to health and social care services from the point of arrival in the UK.
All asylum seekers, regardless of the type of accommodation, have the same access to free NHS services in the same way as British citizens and other permanent residents.