A £1million government scheme for asylum seekers has
been branded a failure after leading to just one family going back
to their country of origin.

The Millbank Pilot scheme in
Ashford had room for 260 families but dealt with just 13, with only
one returning home.

The scheme was aimed at reducing
the number of children locked up in detention centres each year.
But a report by charity said it was a missed opportunity to find a
humane and effective alternative to the detention of children and
families.

Lisa Nandy, Children's Society policy adviser, said: "Although we strongly supported the Government's decision to set up the Millbank Pilot we have serious concerns about the way it was designed and implemented.

"We believe it is vital the UK
Border Agency should use the lesson from Millbank to inform all
future projects, which provide alternatives to detention."

The project was set up in November
2007 as a 10-month experiment. The charity claims this is too short
a time and there were also flaws in the way the scheme was planned
and managed.

Audio: Lisa Nandy Policy
advisor at Children's Society talks about why the scheme hasn't
worked

The Children's Society believes
this led to it failing to reduce the number of children going
through detention and increasing the number of families voluntarily
returning to their own country at the end of the asylum
process.

The report also highlights how
families unable to go back to their country of origin for various
reasons were inappropriately referred to the project.

It said this made the job of those
running the pilot almost impossible.

The UK Border Agency said keeping
families out of detention is its priority. It said a new pilot
project in Glasgow offered families temporary housing and builds on
what was learned from the experience at Ashford.