UK Accused of Attempts to Deport Children to Rwanda Alone

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The Home Office has been accused of attempts to deport unaccompanied children under the age of 18 to Rwanda amidst plans to deport asylum seekers.Charities claimed asylum seekers under 18 are being classed as adults under Home Office age assessments. It has been described as a "worrying pattern" for children who are asylum seekers.Charities identified 70 asylum seekers that had received warnings of imminent removal and are currently being held in immigration detention centres. Three individuals from the group of asylum seekers say that they are under or 16-years-old.

One person who said they were under 18-years-old was placed in a detention centre and was awaiting potential deportation to Rwanda in East Africa. The individual was only released at the end of May after intervention from lawyers.Clare Moseley, the founder of Care4Calais, which is supporting 70 individuals, said that legal challenges have been launched to help safeguard children. Moseley provided an update: "We've got two age disputes but the Home Office has still issued notices of removal."Anti-trafficking charity Love146 UK said that several councils in the UK have raised concerns about Home Office age assessments. Children are being classed as 23-years-old which makes them eligible for deportation to Rwanda as an adult.Daniel Sohege, campaigns manager for Love146 UK, said:

"We are seeing children as young as 14 being incorrectly age-assessed as 23. The number of children we have seen who have just had 1999 put down as their date of birth when they are clearly under 18 is highly concerning, and putting young people at risk." Lauren Starkey, a social worker for the charity, added: "It is not within the realm of possibility that anyone, especially someone trained in child protection, could look at the children we have seen and believe they are in their 20s."

The Home Office has denied that children would be deported to Rwanda alone without any adult supervision. The Home Office has said that "nobody will be removed if it is unsafe or inappropriate for them".This comes amidst the controversy over the Home Secretary Priti Patel's plan to send asylum seekers and refugees to Rwanda to be processed. Last month, pro-refugee protesters interrupted a speech by Patel after infiltrating a Conservative Party "spring dinner".