Immigration detention is not the answer, for anyone.
People are detained without a time limit, for months, sometimes even years.
It is harmful and expensive. It robs people of their dignity, spirit and lives.
This can’t go on.
We are working towards an immigration system that is based on humanity, compassion and fairness.
A 28-day time limit
on immigration detention for all
Automatic judicial oversight
of detention decisions after 72 hours
An end to the detention
of vulnerable people
Community-based alternatives to detention that respect rights can minimise the use of detention, reducing costs and helping people to live with dignity in the community while going through the immigration process.
News
‘Don’t be like me 12 years ago, don’t walk away.’ – What you can do today to challenge immigration detention and hostile environment
Just a few nights ago, I was flicking through a very old report by the Joint Committee on Human Rights published in 2007. Its edges are frayed. Some pages still have post-it notes stuck on them. 12 years [...]
“A stain on our democracy and an affront to the rule of law”: Stuart McDonald MP named Detention Forum Champion
Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East MP Stuart McDonald has been named a Detention Forum Champion by members of the Detention Forum and local civil society organisations for his outstanding contribution to immigration detention reform. Stuart joins Paul Blomfield [...]
“There is a time to fight and there is a time to rest” – Paul Blomfield MP given the Detention Forum champion award by a Sudanese refugee in Sheffield
“There is a time to fight and there is a time to rest” – Paul Blomfield MP given the Detention Forum champion award by a Sudanese refugee in Sheffield 13 June 2018 Paul Blomfield, Labour MP for Sheffield [...]
Revisiting the first Shaw Review
4th June 2018 As we wait with bated breath for the results of Stephen Shaw’s second review of immigration detention, it’s worth taking some time to revisit his first. A former Prisons and Probation Ombudsman, Shaw was commissioned [...]
From a migrant to a son of a migrant, the new Home Secretary
There is usually a moment of hesitation when a media story about something that you have known all along begins to turn into something that looks more like a proper media - and political - frenzy. The truth [...]
#HungerforFreedom – opening a new chapter in the history of challenging immigration detention?
#HungerforFreedom – opening a new chapter in the history of challenging immigration detention? Today, we have heard that the hunger strike that started in Yarl's Wood detention centre in Bedford a month ago ended. But the real news [...]
#Unlocked17
Unlocking Detention is a twitter tour of the Detention Estate
Get in touch
The Detention Forum is hosted by the Refugee Council.
You can contact the Project Director at detentionforum[at]gmail.com, who works several days a week.
You can view our privacy policy here.
The @ESRC "Banished behind bars: Detention in the UK", invites NGOs, charities, policymakers and human rights activists to come together and discuss how we can work to overcome barriers and conduct effective ethical research on detention. 8th Nov, London: https://t.co/XWWyVfcYbQ
We need alternatives to Detention!
Jesuit Refugee Service have written a report on Survivors of Trafficking in Immigration, highlighting the inhumane detention of survivors and the need for an overhaul of the system.
Read their full report here: https://t.co/SYLyZ9Yw7k
"You can but wonder at the sheer courage and dignity of the human spirit that can sustain a person in the face of this much injustice."
Sarah Teather from Jesuit Refugee Service UK on ending the indefinite detention of immigrants.