GovWire

This report considers whether changes to policy and practice between 2016 and 2020, as part of the immigration detention reform programme, were delivering the programme aims. This was undertaken by analysing quantitative indicators over the period January 2016 to June 2020, and through evaluations of measures to reform immigration detention.

The analysis found pre-detention processes involving the detention gatekeeper, accompanied by the processes for assessing vulnerability in detention, were an effective way of safeguarding vulnerable adults and protecting people with the most severe vulnerabilities from long stays in detention. Some smaller changes had a significant impact on the experience of people in detention. There was also a more general trend of a reduction in the use of immigration detention over this period. However, there were few activities to ensure transparency was a key part of detention reform.

This research was commissioned by the last Conservative government, and prior to 5 July 2024.