More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Costly age assessments for migrants arriving in Kent can be off by up to 5 years, according to national paediatricians guidelines.
When people cross the Channel and arrive in Dover they will only be assessed if officers believe the age given to Border Force is false.
They will then undergo an assessment with two social workers for several days. This is to make sure they are given the right provisions whether this is child specific protections, asylum specific aid or no help at all.
Out of 1,668 assessed in the county, 400 were concluded to be adults, but the assesments have been described as "highly subjective" by the Kent Refugee Action Network (KRAN) who also say they fail vulnerable young people.
Bridget Chapman, learning and project coordinator and caseworker at KRAN says she has seen cases where "stroppy" behaviour is used as evidence of a young person behaving like an adult, which can easily be labelled as the behaviour of a teenager.
She said: "The age assessment process is a highly subjective one which we feel too often fails vulnerable young people. They can be taken at very short notice out of foster placements or schools where they are flourishing and placed into settings where they have to fend for themselves.
"When young people are age assessed as being older than originally thought the results can be absolutely devastating and damaging to a young person and their life chances.
"In the worst cases we have seen young people placed in adult facilities where they are sharing a room with adults. This is a significant safeguarding concern."
The charity is aware of several cases where welfare solicitors successfully challenged assessments through a long process, but they fear these results come too late to stop the lasting effects of an incorrect assessment.
According to Home Office guidance, councils are not permitted to use physical appearance, medical information, dental or x-rays when assessing someone's age.
In the past few years, there have been cases where a young person with premature grey hair and a muscular child from a rural background have been assessed as adults.
Instead, where documents are not available, assessors must rely on how young people behave and what is said in interviews about their family, education and activities in the last few years.
This is often called the 'Merton test' following the 'B v London Borough of Merton' case in 2003. In this case, The Guidelines for Paediatricians was referenced for stating: "In practice, age determination is extremely difficult to do with certainty and no single approach to this can be relied on. Moreover, for young people aged 15-18, it is even less possible to be certain about age.
"There may also be difficulties in determining whether a young person who might be as old as 23 could, in fact, be under the age of 18. Age determination is an inexact science and the margin of error can sometimes be as much as 5 years either side."
Kent County Council praise their 'highly skilled' assessors. But the strain on resources - such as social workers, interpreters, care staff and accommodation - are severe, especially with a challenging assessment process where most conclusions are appealed.
Matt Dunkley, the corporate director for children, young people and education at KCC, adds: "The issue with the age assessments is that we are doing 50 to 60 at the moment and they cost about £2,000 of staff time to do at a minimum."
This is all on top of KCC recently announcing they could no longer safely take care of unaccompanied migrant children, leading to new arrivals being detained at the border.
Over 400 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) have arrived in Kent over the last eight months. Less than 200 young migrants arrived between January and September last year.
A Home Office spokesperson said: "We continue to provide Kent County Council with support, including significant increases in funding, but the burden being placed on them is unacceptable and cannot continue.
"We are exploring with local authorities how we can improve the approach to the assessment of age, so only those people assessed by experts as being under 18 are being accommodated by local authorities.”
To read more about why there has been a rise in people crossing the channel, click here.
