The UK asylum system is putting thousands of vulnerable women and children at risk. Our joint report with Rape Crisis exposes these failures and calls for urgent reform to protect women and children from trauma and abuse in asylum accommodation.
Not Safe Here
70%
of women
who have forcibly migrated
have been affected by violence
Sexual and gender based violence is estimated to affect up to 70% of women who have forcibly migrated. The UK’s broken asylum system and asylum accommodation experience is retraumatising these women; exposing them to further abuse, neglect, and systemic harm.
Our report documents the experiences of women who sought safety in the UK only to encounter further violence, neglect, and systemic disregard for their welfare.
By exposing these stories, we aim to drive policy change and bring a clear voice to those who are often silenced.
“We are running away from something, which means we cannot come back home. Some people are willing to go back home and face that suffering; they are willing to die because here, it is so bad. They would rather die back home than live the life they are living here. People are depressed; no one is reaching out for you, and the Home Office is not there for you. I had to find my own support. … They put a fear in us. We can’t even complain at all.”
Evelyn, a survivor of child rape, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation, who was trafficked to the UK when she was 19.
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Most women in the UK asylum process have survived sexual violence prior to their arrival. Yet, the system provides little to no trauma-informed support, neglecting basic safety and mental health needs, which leaves them vulnerable and isolated. It is very common for survivors of sexual abuse and violence - as well as other traumatic experiences - to find it very difficult to talk about what happened to them; yet the UK asylum system also routinely expects survivors to do this, and be forced to relive their trauma, as part of the asylum process.
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Women and children are often forced to share spaces - even bedrooms - with strangers, under agencies contracted by the Home Office that fail to uphold essential safeguarding. Living in overcrowded, unsanitary environments only heightens the distress for those already traumatised.
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Women seeking asylum are frequently left in the dark, without access to updates on their legal cases, and with no access to specialist support services. Language barriers worsen their isolation, and many receive no guidance on how to navigate life in the UK.
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Vulnerable within asylum accommodations, women and children are exposed to further abuse from male residents, unvetted staff, and external threats. Due to the hostile environment policy and denial of public funds, women with failed claims also face destitution, pushing them into dangerous, exploitative situations.
Our report found that many features of the UK asylum system are creating an environment where victims and survivors of sexual violence and abuse are being retraumatised, and where women and children are being put at risk of further harm. These include:
Why has safety become a threat?
Makena, a survivor of sexual violence and exploitation from Sierra Leone, who spoke of how unprotected and retraumatised she felt, living in UK asylum accommodation.
“It was so traumatising, it was so scary. It was the most scary seven months in my life.”
“He made me feel like I could trust him. When I think back, both these men were harassing me. He played with my emotions...”
Lana, a refugee from Iran, who was subjected to sexual harassment and exploitation by two members of staff whilst living in UK asylum accommodation.
“They offer to give me £15,000 to go back with my children; so you expect me to risk my life and the life of my children because of £15,000? I cried. I cried.”
Josephine fled Nigeria for the UK, with her children, after she had endured continual abuse and rape by her husband; and her daughter had been subjected to female genital mutilation. The Home Office rejected her asylum application because she couldn’t remember the exact date that her daughter had been circumcised.
Truths from the frontline
How can these problems be fixed?
Our recommendations include:
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End Institutional Housing: The Secretary of State must develop a plan to end institutional accommodation for asylum-seeking women and families. Where unavoidable, these groups must be housed separately from unrelated adults to ensure safety.
Improve Communication and Accountability: Regular updates on asylum applications and complaint progress should be mandated for victim-survivors to alleviate uncertainty and fear.
Sustainable Funding for Specialised Support: Long-term funding is essential for services that aid migrant and asylum-seeking women, especially in the face of rising xenophobia and targeted violence.
Introduce Holistic Asylum Advocates: Create independent asylum advocate roles to identify and address vulnerabilities early in the process. These advocates, managed by specialist organisations with expertise in supporting women affected by violence, would be a vital support layer.
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Robust Training and Guidance: Implement comprehensive training on safeguarding, equalities, and residents' rights, particularly for women and families. Partnering with expert organisations is critical for culturally and experientially informed training.
Vetting and Complaints Procedures: Staff in asylum accommodation must undergo rigorous vetting, including enhanced DBS checks. Clear complaints and misconduct procedures are essential for accountability.
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VAWG Strategy Inclusion: Recognise and integrate asylum-seeking women in current and future violence against women and girls (VAWG) strategies, using consultation with women’s specialist organisations.
Abolish NRPF: Allow women with insecure immigration status access to support services.
Safe Reporting Pathways: Establish mechanisms that allow victim-survivors of violence to report abuse safely, irrespective of immigration status.
Inclusion of Migrant Women's Voices: Integrate the lived experiences of migrant women into policy development as key stakeholders.
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Independent Inspections and Transparent Records: Regular inspections and transparent documentation of all safeguarding concerns in asylum accommodation must be enforced. The Home Office should receive and publish anonymised data on these cases to ensure public accountability.
Appoint an Independent Chief Inspector: Immediate appointment of an Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration is essential for unbiased oversight.
Our report includes a comprehensive breakdown of each recommendation, offering clear steps for systemic change.
“ The Home Office don’t listen to us. They don’t care about our mental state because personally, for me, I went through a lot during that time. I was moved to a place where I wasn’t safe... Everybody living there will tell you, hands down, that they are not safe.
It’s like you are not safe from the other people around you; you are not safe from yourself.
Imagine, you’re in a room where you have severe depression and so do the people around you. And there is no support out there. If it was not for charities that are offering support, the Home Office don’t offer support…
… Not only that the house was leaking water, there were rats everywhere; there were cockroaches. I felt bad for myself, I felt sorry when I saw the kids that were living in there in that condition for a long time …. And the housing officer actually came and he did nothing about it. “
Evelyn, Survivor
Let’s get loud about whats happening! 📢
Please show your support for asylum-seeking women and children, by sharing our report on social media. We need as many people as possible to hear about these injustices.
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If you’re a Journalist and you would like to write about this report - please contact us at info@imkaan.org.uk
Specialist support is available if you have been affected by these issues
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Support for Black & minoritised women
You are not alone. Our ‘Get Help’ page lists organisations across the UK that specialise in helping women + girls from Black or minoritised communities who have experienced violence & abuse.
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Rape Crisis (Co-author)
Rape Crisis England & Wales is a feminist charity working to end child sexual abuse, rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment and all other forms of sexual violence.
Right of reply
Before publishing Not Safe Here, we offered a right of reply to the four organisations holding Home Office contracts for asylum accommodation and support provision.
At the time of writing the report, the following companies held contracts for the provision of Asylum accommodation: Clearsprings Ready Homes, Mears Group and Serco. The charity Migrant Help held the contract for the national Advice, Issue Reporting and Eligibility Support (AIRE) helpline and support service.
We sent all four a summary of the issues raised in the report that related to their specific organisation and gave them a right of reply. Migrant Help and Serco provided responses, and we included their comments at relevant points throughout the report.
Serco said:
“We completely refute the suggestions that you are making about the work that we do in providing accommodation for asylum seekers … the accommodation, communication and complaints systems are all meeting the standards required.
We also have complete confidence that our teams who are responsible for providing the accommodation services to these vulnerable people, at a particularly difficult time in their lives, are carrying out their work in a professional and compassionate manner”
Migrant Help responded to each of the specific issues we raised with them, and shared the following comment about the report as a whole:
"As an organisation that works to support displaced, trafficked and exploited people, we are grateful to [Rape Crisis England & Wales and Imkaan] for doing this important work, and we actively welcome your report.
We agree that it is imperative that the best support possible is provided to survivors of sexual violence, and, in cases where this support falls short, it is critical that an honest analysis is conducted, and similar incidences are prevented in the future. Thank you for bringing these issues to our attention."