Treat Children Seeking Sanctuary like every other
Party leaders urged to secure the safety of young asylum seekers
Young refugees seeking sanctuary in Scotland endure a postcode lottery of care and protection, according to leading charities.
Aberlour Children’s Charity and the Scottish Refugee Council have joined forces to call on the next Scottish Parliament to guarantee the rights of young unaccompanied asylum seekers while warning some are still enduring needless stress and uncertainty.
The charities, jointly delivering lifeline support to young refugees through the Guardianship Scotland service, spoke out before the looming Holyrood election to urge party leaders and candidates to deliver safety and security for every young person arriving in Scotland alone.
More than 1,000 children are being cared for in Scotland after arriving in the UK unaccompanied with up to 400 new referrals to the service every year. Some are fleeing war, famine or persecution while others have been trafficked across borders by crime gangs.
The charities have called on the new MSPs to ensure every young asylum seeker is treated like any other child in need of care while their asylum applications are considered.
Every one must be treated as a “looked after” child within Scotland’s care system, according to the charities, guaranteeing help from local authorities, including care plans and other protections.
Justina Murray, chief executive of Aberlour, warned the treatment of young asylum seekers can vary across councils with some becoming trapped in a “grey area” between immigration authorities and social work services.
Justina Murray said:
Young people arriving alone to seek safe shelter in Scotland deserve the same chance of a stable home and secure future as any other child.
“The decisions taken in their first weeks and months here can often shape their future for years to come.
“Many are given the care and support they need, and go to school, make friends, build happy, successful lives and contribute to their new communities. Some, sadly, are not.
“Our new MSPs should help ensure every young unaccompanied person seeking asylum in Scotland is seen first through the lens of child protection not immigration control.
“They deserve certainty and stability as quickly as possible so they do not remain in limbo as they approach adulthood.
Scottish ministers have vowed to implement The Promise intended to transform the lives of care experienced children and, according to Aberlour and the Scottish Refugee Council, young asylum seekers deserve the same protection and support.
Sabir Zazi, chief executive of the Scottish Refugee Council, said:
Children and young people coming to Scotland in search of safety deserve exactly the same support as any other child in need of care who lives here.”
“The Promise is to all children in need of care, including those arriving from overseas without their family. If we believe in children’s rights, those rights must apply regardless of immigration status.
The charities are calling on MSPs to engage with Westminster to ensure the rights of unaccompanied children are secured; deliver more funding to allow councils to better respond to their needs; publish clearer national guidance on their rights; improve recording of data to identify gaps or discrimination; and ensure age assessments are swift and fair.
Graeme Marshall, service manager of Guardianship Scotland, said the frontline support service helps young unaccompanied asylum seekers navigate a complex and potentially bewildering immigration system.
He said:
We are not their voice, but we make sure their voice is heard. We help ensure all the different agencies involved in their care and immigration status are seeing a child not a case file.
“Treating them as children first is not a radical demand but a simple request for respect, compassion, and decency.
Read Aberlour and the Scottish Refugee Council's calls to all polictical parties ahead of the Scottish Parliament Election to protect the rights of unaccompanied asylum-Seeking children.