IMB Annual Reports
768 annual reports from Independent Monitoring Boards covering 171 establishments. IMBs provide independent oversight of prisons, immigration removal centres, and secure training centres. Source: imb.org.uk.
768
Reports
171
Establishments
757
With Key Concerns
Establishment Type
Reports by Year
Key Findings
99% of IMB reports flag key concerns.
Independent monitors cover 171 establishments
across prisons, immigration removal centres and secure training centres.
Gatwick pre-departure accommodation
PRISON
Concerns
The IMB report for Gatwick Pre-Departure Accommodation for 2023 highlights concerns regarding the detention of four families, all of whose removal attempts failed. The Board questions the fairness and humanity of the process, particularly noting the trauma to children and callous treatment of a pregnant mother. Key recommendations include the closure of the PDA and prohibiting the detention of pregnant women.
Key concerns identified
- The Board questions the value, fairness, and humanity of detaining families with children in the PDA, noting it may prolong or add to existing trauma.
- Children are sometimes placed in the position of interpreting for their parents, taking on responsibilities beyond their years, leading to unfair and unequal treatment.
- The Home Office's decision-making process led to callous treatment and unnecessary suffering for a pregnant mother and her young children during an attempted removal.
- Significant concerns exist regarding the severe impact of detention on the mental and emotional well-being of all family members, particularly children.
- The high proportion of failed removals from the PDA suggests that the benefits do not outweigh the distress caused by its use.
- The IMB's exclusion from a Home Office "lessons learned" review following a serious incident undermines the aim of learning and independent oversight.
- Children are sometimes placed in the position of interpreting for their parents, taking on responsibilities beyond their years, leading to unfair and unequal treatment.
- The Home Office's decision-making process led to callous treatment and unnecessary suffering for a pregnant mother and her young children during an attempted removal.
- Significant concerns exist regarding the severe impact of detention on the mental and emotional well-being of all family members, particularly children.
- The high proportion of failed removals from the PDA suggests that the benefits do not outweigh the distress caused by its use.
- The IMB's exclusion from a Home Office "lessons learned" review following a serious incident undermines the aim of learning and independent oversight.
Gatwick pre-departure accommodation
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 0
Assaults: 0
Staff assaults: 0
The reporting year 2020 was exceptional due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to the Gatwick Pre-departure Accommodation (PDA) being largely closed from March onwards. Only three families were held between January and March, none of whom were removed from the UK; all were released back into the community. Consequently, the Independent Monitoring Board's annual report for this period is necessarily limited in its scope and findings.
Key concerns identified
- The system that involves children witnessing their parents’ distress and facing forcible removal cannot be described as fair or humane.
- Children being taken from their home to face forcible removal to a country they have no knowledge of negatively impacts them and results in unfair and unequal treatment.
- The system, as currently organised, often removes families before all legal avenues are exhausted, militating against children's sense of safety and security.
- Children being taken from their home to face forcible removal to a country they have no knowledge of negatively impacts them and results in unfair and unequal treatment.
- The system, as currently organised, often removes families before all legal avenues are exhausted, militating against children's sense of safety and security.