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Unaccompanied asylum seeking children under 18 are supported by local authority social services, not the National Asylum Support Service (NASS).
Supporting unaccompanied children under The Children Act 1989
Guidance was issued in June 2003 from the Department of Health. It advises
those responsible for unaccompanied children to base their services on the
children's assessed needs and to ensure that the children are looked after
whilst the assessment takes place.
Download
the guidance (Local authority circular (2003) 13)
This guidance and related issues are explained in a Refugee Council briefing
on support for 17 & 18 year old unaccompanied asylum seekers [August 2003].
Download the briefing
(pdf only)
The Refugee Council is also part of the Refugee Children's Consortium, a
group of NGOs who work collaboratively to ensure that the rights and needs
of refugee children are promoted, respected and met in accordance with the
relevant domestic, regional and international standards.
Download
a briefing outlining its position on caring for unaccompanied children(2001)
(pdf only).
Reports on the support of unaccompanied children
Ringing the Changes - A Refugee Council report on the impact of guidance on the support of unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (January 2005)
A Case for Change: how refugee children in England are missing out (May 2002)
Further help and advice
On New Ground - research based guidance aimed at those supporting unaccompanied asylum seeking children and young people. Produced by Research in Practice
Rights
and Entitements guide from Save the Children (Pick Guide 5: A guide
to the rights and entitlements of separated refugee children from the
list)
Separated Children in Europe (for good practice guidnace, research reports and country assessments)
The Refugee Council's Children's Panel of Advisers works with unaccompanied children under the age of 18 in the UK. Find out more about the children's panel. For advocacy on individual cases, please contact the Panel on 020 7346 1134
The Refugee Council published translated leaflets about the Children's Panel aimed at unaccompanied children. Download these from publications.
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