IRC
Cat IRC
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Yarl’s Wood IRC
IMB Annual Report 2024 · Published 5 August 2025
Yarl's Wood IRC experienced a 40% increase in detainee throughput in 2024, operating close to its 444-person capacity. While staff are commended for humane treatment and effective incident management, concerns persist regarding high levels of violence, inappropriate detention of vulnerable individuals, and poor information sharing. The Board highlights issues with prolonged detention, slow casework progression, and the inappropriate use of the CSU for mental health cases, noting that staff recruitment and retention remain challenging.
Positive Findings
Officers are commended for their efforts to diffuse altercations, engage in mediation, and effectively manage a major incident, demonstrating lessons learned from previous years. Staff generally treat detainees fairly and humanely, and the healthcare team is well-staffed, providing a range of health awareness sessions. The Board welcomes the increase in Detainee Engagement Team (DET) staff and notes improved mental health referral processes through NHFT. Positive changes include the replacement of 'HMP' labelled bags for detainee valuables and the organisation of cultural and social events to celebrate diversity.
Key Concerns
Safety
The levels of violence at Yarl’s Wood over the course of 2024 are similar to those in 2023. There have been many altercations between detained persons and there continues to be physical and verbal assaults on both female and male officers.
Safety
The level of violence can be directly attributed to the proportion of the detained persons that are TSFNOs (Time Served Foreign National Offender), which has, at times, been more than 50% of the male population. There also continues to be a high level of stress and anger, particularly amongst the men, at the length of time they have been kept in detention. This in turn has contributed to the levels of violence, along with poor mental health.
Estate/Conditions
The fragility of the centre’s fabric remains with potential risks resulting from such incidents.
Safety
The Board has commented on a potential safeguarding exposure in having both male and female detained persons in the Care and Separation Unit (CSU) at the same time. It would be appropriate to have separate CSU accommodation for both males and females.
Safety
The Detention Gatekeeper should be more robust in its safeguarding purpose of protecting vulnerable people from being detained.
Mental Health
Information coming from prisons about the mental health and vulnerability of men being transferred to Yarl's Wood should be improved. There is poor information sharing that creates unnecessary risk in ensuring the safety and wellbeing of detained persons and increases the work for the staff, both Serco and healthcare.
Mental Health
The CSU has been used to house detained persons with significant mental health problems, often for weeks at a time until a mental health bed has been found. The CSU is safer than other locations, but it is not an appropriate place for someone experiencing severe mental health problems.
Equality/Diversity
There are still some complaints that the women receive unwelcome comments and cat calls from the men.
Safety
Women have been unfairly threatened by officers with use of force if they refuse a transfer to the Derwentside IRC, when the transfer has been for administration purposes.
Mental Health
Repeated
The Board continues to be concerned about the number of persons detained with significant mental health problems. The Board is pleased to report that the responsibility for referral for specialist treatment has been assumed by NHFT, which should give improved management of the referral process. The Board notes that this is against a backdrop of a shortage of mental health beds generally.
Healthcare
Healthcare is hindered in its work by detained persons arriving with a lack of medical history and who require treatment. Medication cannot be prescribed until their medical records are obtained or they are assessed by a GP.
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
The Board continues to be concerned about the length of time that detained persons, particularly TSFNOs, spend at the centre, leading to frustration and deterioration in their mental health.
Resettlement/Release
Lack of information from case workers continues and the DET staff increase has not noticeably improved casework progression.
Resettlement/Release
The Board regularly receives complaints from detained persons about the length of time it takes for bail accommodation to be approved with one man saying he had been waiting eight months.
Other
The Board considers this practice demeaning and unfair.
Safety
The Board has questioned Serco about this, and a Home Office instruction has been amended, leading to the use of handcuffs being the default position.
Food/Catering
The Board does inspect and taste the food and considers the portions generous, albeit they can be stodgy.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The Board has seen the use of vapes indoors and noted that this is tolerated by some officers and enforced by others. To avoid any misunderstanding of policy by detained persons the Board recommends that there should be consistency in application of the policy by staff.
Mental Health
Repeated
The Board is surprised that these numbers are not more closely aligned.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The signal for mobile phones has been inconsistent throughout the year. When combined with occasional computer outages, this has been upsetting for detained persons who could not communicate with family and friends or pursue their cases.
Resettlement/Release
It would appear that distance from family is not fully considered when persons are allocated to IRCs.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
However, the Board does not consider that the CSU is suitable as pre-departure accommodation.
Board Commentary
Staffing
The recruitment and retention of suitable staff remains a constant challenge, though the Board commends the appointment of increasingly diverse staff who bring valuable additional language skills. Many positive and caring interactions between officers and detainees were observed, with detainees often commenting on staff kindness. Having specific staff assigned to each unit, where possible, helps foster an atmosphere of understanding and trust.
Healthcare
Healthcare services are provided by Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT), which is well-staffed and offers appointments with doctors and mental health nurses generally within three days. A range of health awareness sessions are facilitated. However, concerns persist regarding the high number of detainees with significant mental health problems, a general shortage of mental health beds, and delays in treatment due to new arrivals lacking medical history. The responsibility for specialist mental health referrals has been streamlined through NHFT, aiming for improved management.
Regime & Daily Life
The daily regime includes several periods of unlock and free association, totalling approximately 10 hours out of cell, interspersed with lockdowns for counts and meals. Detainees are locked in their rooms overnight from 10 PM to 7 AM. Men and women have separate unit regimes, with access to recreational activities and facilities like the gym, sports hall, cultural kitchens, and IT room.
Applications to the IMB
Prisoners can apply to their IMB about any aspect of their treatment. This table shows application counts by category.
| Category | Current | Previous | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation including laundry, showers | 1 | 3 | |
| Equality | 0 | 0 | |
| Escorts | 2 | 0 | |
| Finance including detained persons centre accounts | 0 | 0 | |
| Food and kitchens | 0 | 0 | |
| Health including physical, mental, social care | 0 | 2 | |
| Issues relating to detained persons immigration case, including access to legal advice | 8 | 20 | |
| Letters, faxes, visits, phones, internet access | 0 | 0 | |
| Other | 3 | 5 | |
| Property during transfer or in another establishment or location | 2 | 2 | — |
| Property within centre | 0 | 0 | |
| Purposeful activity including education, paid work, training, library, other activities | 0 | 0 | |
| Staff/detained persons conduct, including bullying | 4 | 3 | |
| Use of force, removal from association | 2 | 0 |
Recommendations (7)
Other: 1
Home Office: 4
Governor / Director: 1
NHS / Healthcare Provider: 1
3 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board repeats the recommendation to introduce a time limit for immigration detention. If no time limit is introduced, how does the Minister plan to ensure that the amount of time people are held in detention is decreased?
Other
(minister)
Resettlement
Response
Recommendation rejected.
Recommendation 2
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The removal process for TSFNOs is started in prisons well before their sentence is due to end and in advance of their transfer from prison to the immigration estate.
Home Office
Resettlement
Response
FNOs are referred to the HO for deportation immediately following sentencing. HMPPS are working closely with the HO to ensure the Early Removal Scheme (ERS) runs as efficiently as possible. Statistically, the number of FNO returns has increased by 28% in the year ending June 2024. However, the length of time that FNOs spend in the IRC estate once they have been transferred from prison continues to be a source of frustration and unrest amongst detained persons.
Recommendation 3
Repeated
The length of stay is reduced by improving the processes related to asylum status/and or removal.
Home Office
Resettlement
Recommendation 4
The process for voluntary returns should be improved/rationalised so that those who wish to leave, do so more quickly.
Home Office
Resettlement
Recommendation 5
The Detention Gatekeeper should be more robust in its safeguarding purpose of protecting vulnerable people from being detained
Home Office
Safety
Recommendation 6
There have been logistical issues when the CSU unit has been needed to be used by both male and female detained persons. The Board recommends that to avoid such problems, there should be a separate dedicated CSU for female detained persons.
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 7
To encourage external acute psychiatric services to remove psychiatrically ill patients at an early stage.
NHS / Healthcare Provider
Mental Health