Women should not be held in Detention!

A new report, Women’s Experience of Immigration Detention , from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons paints a damning picture of how detention impacts on  women held not just in Derwenside IRC but also in a number of mixed immigration removal centres and holding centres. The charity Women for Refugee Women  has responded with the powerful statement below.

We believe like them that no amount of reform can make detention safe for women.

Women for Refugee Women welcomes HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ new inspection report into the experiences of women in immigration detention. The findings provide further evidence that immigration detention is harming women and failing to safeguard those who are most vulnerable in detention.

The report paints a deeply troubling picture of a system that continues to detain women who have survived trafficking, modern slavery, domestic abuse, sexual violence, and severe mental ill-health. HMIP found that 40% of women in immigration detention were recognised as Adults at Risk, and documented histories of domestic or sexual violence in more than half of the cases it reviewed. Yet inspectors repeatedly found that vulnerability was not properly identified, communicated, or taken into account when decisions were made to detain women. The report also highlights examples of women experiencing acute mental health crises, being held in segregation for extended periods, being detained despite indicators of trafficking and modern slavery, or being subjected to detention when they were clearly unwell and in need of medical care.

Particularly concerning is the continued detention of women in centres primarily designed for men. Nearly half of all detained women were being held in mixed-gender facilities – where women regularly face restricted movements and reduced access to services given insufficient female staff and dedicated women’s only spaces.   women’s freedoms are instead limited even further, for the sake of operational constraints or convenience. For women who have survived trauma, including SGBV and other torture, these conditions are especially damaging.

The report also shines a light on the devastating impact detention has on family life. Many women were separated from their children and loved ones, yet inspectors found little proactive support to help them maintain family contact. Most centres did not even record whether women had children or who was caring for them. One woman was unable to see her baby who was in hospital via video-call for several days due to barriers and poor communication around contact arrangements. Across two centres, Derwentside and Dungavel, only 22% of women received visits from their loved ones, highlighting the extreme isolation caused by detention.

The findings on transfers and the use of restraints are equally alarming, yet unsurprising to WRW. Women were subjected to exhausting overnight journeys, inappropriate transfers despite serious health concerns, and the routine use of handcuffs – including in some cases on pregnant women and survivors of abuse.

This report confirms what women with experience of detention have told us for years: immigration detention is not a safe environment and causes deep and long-lasting harm and re-traumatisation. Existing safeguarding mechanisms are failing in practice. that repeatedly detains survivors of rape, trafficking, abuse and torture, and then fails to recognise or respond appropriately to their needs, is a system that is severely failing and needs overhauling.

This report should act as a wake-up call to Ministers. The evidence is clear: immigration detention is failing women, exposing them to further harm and inherently falling short of the standards of care and protection survivors need and deserve. WRW urges the Government to implement alternatives to detention, where women can resolve their immigration and asylum cases within our communities, with the support of their loved ones. Immigration detention is inherently harmful to all and must end, now.

Carenza Muggleton-Arnold, Head of Campaigns at Women for Refugee Women, said:

“This inspection lays bare the reality of what women experience in immigration detention. Women who have survived immense trauma, including sexual and gender-based violence, are being locked up despite clear evidence of their vulnerability. Many are then held in environments that disregard their needs, leave them feeling unsafe, and ultimately re-traumatise them.”

“The findings raise serious questions about the Home Office’s ability to identify and protect vulnerable women. Time and time again, inspectors found cases where obvious warning signs were missed or ignored, with devastating consequences for women’s wellbeing and safety.”

“No amount of reform can make detention safe. The Government must urgently reduce the use of immigration detention and implement community -based alternatives that treat women with dignity, humanity and respect.”