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NEWS RELEASE

24th June 2009

Refugee Action response to Kent scheme report

In response to today’s news reports on a Kent scheme run by Migrant Helpline that aimed to reduce the numbers of children locked up in detention centres, Sandy Buchan, Chief Executive of Refugee Action, said:

"While it is clear that there were problems with this scheme, the principles that underpin it are sound. This was an attempt by the Home Office to manage asylum applications outside of the detention system, and particularly to spare children the trauma of being detained. We would like to see the Home Office and agencies and charities that work with asylum seekers learn from the experiences of this scheme and continue to find alternatives to detaining asylum seekers and pilot other projects."

ENDS

For more information contact Julia Ravenscroft, Press Officer at Refugee Action, on 0161 233 1956 or 07771 748 159 or on Juliar@refugee-action.org.uk.

Notes to editors:

The project was a centre in Kent run by the charity Migrant Helpline, funded by the Home Office. The Children’s Society have today published a report on the project.
Refugee Action is an independent, national charity working to enable refugees to build new lives in the UK. We provide practical advice and assistance for newly arrived asylum seekers and support their settlement through community development work. As one of the country’s leading agencies in the field, Refugee Action has 27 years’ experience in pioneering innovative work in partnership with refugees and advised more than 40,000 asylum seekers and refugees last year.